I am Lupin: Year 1
by MelpomeneMuse
Summary: Sequel to I am Lupin: Prologue. Remus Lupin begins his first year at Hogwarts and the Marauders are formed. Various pranks are pulled and Remus tries to juggle lycanthropy with his studies with varying degrees of success. PLEASE REVIEW!
1. Part 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own the words, just the way some of them are strung together.**

**Year 1: Part 1**

**Wednesday, July 21****st**** 1971**

Remus Lupin sat on the sofa in the living room, staring gloomily out at the garden, his eyes surveying the shed that Uncle Ezra had built four years previously over the spot where his life had changed for ever and where his brother had met his end.

It had seemed the logical place to put it at the time. A sort of memorial. A constant reminder of what had been lost.

Remus remembered the day his uncle had created it for him. It had been the day after his father had left, the day the Ministry officials came.

"Mrs Lupin…"

"_Dr_ Lupin."

"Your son is a werewolf. Your husband has made it perfectly clear that he won't be responsible for the boy. You are but a muggle. You cannot, _do _not, have the ability to look after him and keep him under control."

"I believe I can help," Uncle Ezra had intervened. "Ezra Seward."

He held out his hand and the official shook it reluctantly.

"I'm a writer for _the_ _Wizard Tourist_ magazine. Ever heard of it? Quite renown. Anyway, the point is, _I'm_ a wizard, even if _Dr_ Lupin here is not. And, as Remus' godfather, I'm more than willing to look out for the boy."

"But if you work for a travel magazine, won't you be out of the country quite a lot."

Ezra shrugged. "I'll have to change jobs. So what? We all make sacrifices. I wasn't particularly well-paid anyway."

So the Ministry had reluctantly approved Ezra as Remus' guardian and keeper. Then they had watched as the man built the shed and placed strengthening spells, silencing charms and security alarms onto it. They had searched for faults, but found none in Ezra's wand-work. And so it was that, every full moon, Remus was able to transform at home.

It was four years to the day that Romulus had died and Remus, now eleven, the same age as Remus had been, couldn't help but grieve over the way his life had been so thoroughly altered.

Ever since Remus could remember, he and Romulus had dreamed of going to Hogwarts to become wizards. They had wanted to become aurors, healers, seers, curse-breakers, dragon-slayers. When Romulus had received his letter any doubt that the two of them would never become wizards was instantly washed away. Then, that very same day, all their dreams had been cruelly ripped apart.

Remus' father had said he would never get to go to Hogwarts but, until this morning, the boy had always hoped. Yet the letter hadn't come. There was no owl on the kitchen table. No yellow envelope with emerald green ink marking his name as the recipient. No hope.

The upstairs floorboards creaked as Uncle Ez moved around in his room upstairs. He had moved in the day before Remus' second transformation and had made Romulus' old bedroom his own. He had been true to his word and given up his job as a travel writer. Instead he had become _Witch Weekly_'s Agony Aunt, a job which, he had said, he found strangely satisfying.

Remus sighed. Since his father had left he had attended the local muggle junior school. Now that it was the holidays he was bored. Not because there was no one around to play with (he usually kept to himself these days and was bullied at school), but because there was a distinct lack of work for him to busy himself with. He allowed his eyes to roam over the bookshelves in the living room. Books of magic. They were not worth reading, not any more. Shakespeare? He'd read them all. He reached towards them anyway. After all, he had nothing else to do.

The doorbell rang. He paused, curious, but too shy to pluck up the courage and answer it. Then he realised that his mother had already left for the local surgery and that, if his uncle had started work upstairs, nothing but a growling stomach would bring him down.

Biting his lip nervously (a habit which he had picked up from his mother), he made his way out of the living room and into the hallway. Through the frosted glass window in the front door he could make out a figure with hair wound tightly in a bun.

He opened the door and came face-to-face with a rather severe woman with black hair and square glasses.

"Mr Remus Lupin?" she inquired, her eyes narrowing as she looked him up and down.

"Yes," he said nervously. What did his mother do with visitors like this? Invite her in for a cup of tea? That seemed too personal; he didn't know this woman. But she seemed to know him.

"Um…" he tried.

"I am Professor McGonagall, Deputy-headmistress at Hogwarts School."

He felt his eyes widen. Had she said Hogwarts? Were they here to apologise to him for not letting him go? Surely they wouldn't bother. But he could think of no other reason for her coming here.

"Would… would you like a cup of tea?" he ventured, suddenly terribly unsure of himself. His mother always made tea when she was nervous.

"Traditionally one asks a visitor in before they ask them whether they would like refreshments," Professor McGonagall said, not unkindly. Remus felt himself blush and he stepped away from the door, leading the way into the kitchen.

He put the kettle onto boil then, realising he hadn't put any water into it, forced himself to slow down and focus. He filled the kettle, put it on to boil again and then reached into the kitchen cupboard for a mug. He paused and pulled out another mug for himself to have a hot chocolate. Then, guessing that Uncle Ez might want a cup of coffee, pulled out a third mug.

"We have PG tips or peppermint," he said, turning to face the visitor once again. She paused her examination of the small, but neat, kitchen.

"Peppermint will do nicely, thank you."

"Is your mother at home?" she asked when he handed her a rather flowery mug. He had tried to choose one that she might like but now that he handed it to her he realised that, maybe, she wasn't the 'flowery' type.

"No… but my Uncle Ezra's here. Do you want to speak to him?"

"Please."  
>Remus let loose a sigh of relief. This women wanted to speak to an adult, not to him. He took his uncle's coffee upstairs and knocked on the bedroom door before entering.<p>

Ezra, fully engrossed in a letter from some witch in Canterbury who had fallen in love with a centaur, didn't notice him until Remus had set the mug on the coaster. Even then he simply grunted his thanks before taking a gulp of the hot liquid.

"Uncle Ez…" Remus mumbled nervously. "There's a woman downstairs who wants to speak to you."

"Don't I wish," Ezra replied, still not taking his eyes off of the letter.

"She says her name is Professor McGonagall."  
>Ezra nearly dropped his coffee.<p>

"McGonagall! Here?" He threw the letter on the desk and jumped to his feet, placing his coffee back on the table. "Well, what are you waiting for? Take me to her!"

Remus obliged. He didn't really want to see the scary-looking woman again but, since he had left his hot chocolate in the kitchen, he would have to go back there anyway.

"Well, well, well. Minerva McGonagall," Ezra grinned at the woman and, to Remus' surprise, she smiled back.

"Ezra Seward," she acknowledged.

"Minerva was a few years above me at school," Remus' godfather explained. "Not that that stopped me from asking her out," he added with a wink.

"You received a rather firm 'no' if I remember correctly," the professor replied, unfazed.

Ezra chuckled under his breath. "Have you come here to tell me you've changed your mind?"

Remus stood next to the kettle, on the furthest side of the room from the door, uncertain whether he should stay and listen or whether it would be more polite to excuse himself and hide in his room.

"Actually, I'm here to talk about your godson, Mr Lupin here."

She caught Remus' brown eyes with her green ones.

"I have a letter for you," she said, drawing a yellow envelope from her robes until he could clearly see, written on it in emerald ink, _Mr R. J. Lupin, Honey Cottage, Devon_. She held it out to him and, trembling he took it.

Turning it over he felt his breath catch because there, indented into a blob of purple wax was the Hogwarts coat of arms.

For a moment he simply stood there, staring at it, trying to remember how to breathe. It couldn't be, he thought. Unless they didn't know what he was. But then, why would the deputy-headmistress bother to deliver it to him in person.

I must be dreaming, he thought.

Uncle Ezra nudged him gently.

"Well, Remus? You going to make us stand here all day?"

Remus shook his head, unable to trust his voice, and gently slid his finger under the wax seal, trying not to damage it.

At long last it was open and, still shaking, Remus lifted the letter from the envelope and read.

_HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore_

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Mr Lupin,_

_ We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

_ Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

Remus read the letter ten times before it sank in. He had been accepted! He was going to Hogwarts.

But, a voice in the back of his mind held back his excitement. It's too good to be true, he thought. They don't know about my… _condition_, and I'll have to tell them and when I do they won't want me anymore.

Suddenly Remus was terrified. He so wanted to go but if he went he would have to tell someone and if he told someone he wouldn't be allowed to go. It was a no-win situation and the more he thought about it, the more upset he became.

He felt Uncle Ezra squeeze his shoulders.

"Are you and the headmaster aware of a certain… illness Remus suffers from?" he asked. Remus flinched but otherwise remained silent, keeping his eyes on the paper in front of him.

"We are prepared to take measures to accommodate his lycanthropy and keep him and the other students safe." Remus wondered whether he'd heard her correctly. "The headmaster sees no reason why the boy can't come."

When Ezra spoke it sounded as though he were choking back tears.

"Smart man, that Professor Dumbledore." He squeezed Remus tighter. "What do you say, Remus? Do you want to go? Or do you want to wait to discuss this with your mother when she comes home?"

The boy opened his mouth to speak but no sound came out. He looked up, straight into the eyes of the severe Professor only, suddenly, she didn't seem so severe anymore. In his eyes she was the kindest witch he had ever met.

"I thought I wouldn't be able to go," he whispered and, to his embarrassment, he felt a tear roll down his face. As he wiped it hurriedly away he felt a bubbling sensation in his stomach and he realised he was grinning. He laughed, for the first time in many years, and the house rang with his peals of joy.


	2. Part 2

**Year 1: Part 2**

**Thursday, July 22****nd**** 1971**

The next day Ezra took Remus to Diagon Alley via the floo network. They landed in _the Leaky Cauldron _covered in ash. Remus quickly brushed himself down and looked around.

He had only ever been to London once with his father when he was very small and barely remembered the experience. He was therefore not sure what to expect when he looked around, but a very dark and shabby-looking pub was the last thing on his list.

A bald, ancient-looking barman had looked up briefly when the two had appeared in the fireplace. He took in their rather ragged appearance, nodded a greeting and resumed wiping a greasy looking glass. He expected no custom from them; they were just passing through.

A few others sat in the pub but they kept to themselves. Remus was grateful. Ever since 'the accident' he had felt nervous around people. He stuck close to his godfather as they moved out of the pub.

"If you give me your list, I'll get most of your things," Ezra said as they entered Diagon Alley. "You can get yourself a wand and some robes." He pointed to Ollivanders and Madame Malkin's. "We'll meet back here when you're done. Alright?"

Remus looked at the busy alley fearfully but nodded. He would have to go to Hogwarts on his own so he might as well get used to the idea of being in crowded places by himself. Ezra gave him a squeeze on his shoulders and a purse of money.

"Buy yourself some treats while your at it," he murmured, pointing to a sweet shop close by, before marching off into the crowds.

Remus wandered forwards, dodging and ducking to avoid people in the crowd. He passed a shop selling broomsticks and saw a boy with messy black hair and glasses goggling at the broom in the window. A Nimbus 1001. The black-haired boy tugged at his mother's robes, pointing at it whilst she chatted amicably with another witch.

Remus forced his eyes away. He had never flown a broom. They were expensive and his father had never been a fan of heights. Neither was Remus, if truth be told, but it was fashionable to own one nevertheless.

At last he had managed to reach Ollivanders. He peered through the glass. The interior looked dusty. He walked inside and a tinkling bell sounded from deep within.

"Good morning," said a soft voice and Remus jumped. An old man with pale eyes had suddenly appeared behind the counter. "Mr…?"

"Remus Lupin," the boy croaked. His mouth felt dry all of a sudden and he could feel the magic in the air around him.

"Son of John Lupin? Eleven inches, ash and dragon-heartstring? Good for everyday magic. Quite reliable." He pulled out a tape measure. "Which is your wand hand?"

Remus held out his right arm and Ollivander began to measure him. After a while the tape measure began to move of its own accord. The old man left to rummage around in some boxes at the back of the shop.

"That will do," he told the tape measure and it fell to the floor. "Right then, Mr Lupin. Try this one. Holly and unicorn hair. Swishy. Ten and a quarter inches. Just give it a wave."

Remus did but it was snatched from him almost immediately and another was thrust into his hand.

"Thirteen inches. Ash and phoenix feather. Pliable… no, no. Maple and dragon heartstring… no…"

It seemed as though Remus would have to try every wand in the shop. He was beginning to panic. If he couldn't find a wand then maybe he wouldn't be able to become a wizard after all. What a fool he would feel!

However, the more wands he tried the happier Ollivander seemed to become.

"Tricky customer. Don't worry, there'll be a wand here for you somewhere…"

The old man picked a box off the shelf. It was incredibly dusty, as though it had been placed there centuries ago.

"Not my usual merchandise," he muttered to himself, "but then again… maybe…"

He opened the box and offered the wand to Remus.

"Try it."

Remus picked up the wand and suddenly felt calm spread over him like a warm blanket. He gave the wand a little flick and a single lotus flower appeared and floated to the floor before fading into nothing. He grinned.

"Interesting, interesting…" Ollivander murmured. "Twelve and a half inches. Oak. Very reliable material, sturdy. But a werewolf hair core. Difficult to acquire, though hardly rare or expensive, and notoriously temperamental. Never made one myself. This wand was created by my great grandfather. The hair was given to him by a werewolf in exchange for an iguana. Rather amusing story… Not my usual merchandise…"

Remus bit his lip nervously but said nothing. As soon as he had given Ollivander four galleons he rushed out of the shop.

Madam Malkin was a small, rather middle-aged witch who dressed in mauve. She welcomed Remus in and stood him on a footstool, beckoning another woman over to measure him. Whilst she adjusted the second-hand black robes another boy, about Remus' age walked in with his mother and what looked like his younger brother. The two boys both had grey eyes and black curls. As the older boy stood on the footstool he looked across at Remus and grinned.

"Hogwarts?" he asked and Remus nodded. "First year?" Remus nodded again. "Brilliant! I'm gonna be a first year too."

He was momentarily silenced as a black robe was forced over his head.

"What's this?" he said looking down at himself aghast. "Silk? Mother, I don't need silk robes. They're impractical, for goodness sakes."  
>The boy's mother, a rather terrifying black-haired figure with a sharp chin, frowned at him.<p>

"We do not want people to think you were not the heir to a wealthy pure-blood family," she began but the boy had already taken the offending robes off.

"Bog-standard robes will do me fine," he said stubbornly. Remus was glad, for the boy's sake, that looks couldn't kill, because his mother seemed to be giving it a good attempt. The boy, however, did not seem to notice.

"What's your name?" he asked Remus, throwing him another friendly grin.

"Remus Lupin," he mumbled. The boy's mother glared at him and he gulped.

"I'm Sirius."

Remus was confused. Serious about what?

The boy must have seen the look of confusion on his face. "That's my name," he said, glumly. "Sirius, as in the dog star. Stupid name, I know…"

"It is a good name," his mother interjected before turning to the seamstress. "Are you finished?" she asked. When Madam Malkin nodded, the boy's mother quite literally dragged her son off the footstool and out of the shop.

"You're finished too, dear," the robe-maker told Remus kindly and he paid for his robes.

Remus then left to buy some chocolate at the sweet shop before meeting up with Uncle Ezra at _the Leaky Cauldron_. It had been many years since he had had a chocolate frog and now was as good a time as any to start collecting the cards.


	3. Part 3

**Year 1: Part 3**

**Wednesday, September 1****st**** 1971**

Having spent the rest of the summer holidays pouring over his school books, memorising every property of his potion's ingredients and struggling to understand the theory behind all the spells, Remus still felt nervous when he arrived at King's Cross Station. He was certain that all the other children would know more than him and that he would stick out as the class idiot. His knowledge of the wizarding world was, after all, a little rusty, since his mother knew next to nothing about magic and Uncle Ez, as a muggle-born, was a little uncertain about the sort of things a young wizard would be expected to know.

"You'll be fine," Ezra said, squeezing Remus' shoulders. "They'll be plenty of muggle-borns who will be even more out of their depths than you are. Just relax."

His mother smiled at him. She had managed to get the day off work to see him off. She smoothed back his hair and gave his forehead a kiss.

"Go on then," she said, pushing him towards the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. "I can't follow."  
>Remus took a deep breath and Ezra gave his shoulders another squeeze. Then, stealing one last glance at his mother and godfather, he closed his eyes, grimaced and walked forwards.<p>

When he opened them he found himself in front of a scarlet steam engine, the words _Hogwarts Express_ emblazoned on its side. He looked behind him. He could no longer see his mother or uncle. Instead there was a wrought-iron archway with the words _Platform Nine and Three-Quarters_ on it. He allowed himself a brief smile.

This was it! he thought. I'm passed the point of no return. His breath caught in his throat. I'm going to be a wizard!

He felt something smash into him and he toppled forwards over his trolley.

"Watch it!" an angry voice yelled at him and he turned to see a tall boy with long blonde hair and piercing grey eyes staring at him. A shiny green badge with the words 'prefect' written in silver upon it sat proudly on the boy's chest.

"S-sorry," Remus stammered.

The prefect's eyes slid over Remus' second-hand robes and he sneered. Suddenly he was joined by a rather attractive blonde girl with pale blue eyes. She stared at Remus and wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"What is the world coming to?" she asked the prefect, "When someone so _obviously _inferior like _him_ gets into Hogwarts?"

A fourth figure hurled himself through the barrier, crashing into the prefect.

"What the…? Lucius!"

The new boy picked himself up off the floor and brushed his robes down angrily. Remus felt a jolt of recognition. It was the boy he had met a Madam Malkin's.

"It's not Lucius' fault, cousin" the girl said. "It's this idiot here."

She indicated towards Remus who blushed furiously. The black-haired boy looked at him and he frowned in thought.

"Lupin?" he asked and grinned when Remus nodded.

"It's alright, Cissy. He's a friend of mine," the boy told the girl.

"A friend?" the prefect said incredulously.

"That's right," the younger boy said, smiling politely and, without further ado, he tucked his arm in Remus' and led him towards the train.

"Sorry about that," he apologised. "Lucius is a right git. Can't think what my cousin Cissy sees in him. Mind you, she's a bit, you know, herself."  
>"Thank you, um… Sirius, right?"<p>

The boy grinned. "Good memory," said appraisingly. "Let's pick a compartment right at the end of the train, away from the prefect carriage. That way we shouldn't run into Lucius again."

The two of them were struggling to get their trunks onto the train when a hand shot out to help them.

"Need a hand?" a boy with messy black hair and glasses asked.

Sirius looked at him and grinned. "If you wouldn't mind," he accepted politely with a small mock bow, nearly dropping his trunk on his foot.

Together the three of them finally managed to lift the heavy trunks onto some luggage racks in the nearest compartment to the back of the train.

"I'm James," the messy haired boy said, sticking out his hand. "First-year," he added.

"Sirius," Sirius replied, shaking the proffered limb. "And this is… what's your first name again?"

"Remus."

"A pleasure," James said, shaking his hand enthusiastically.

There was a loud bang outside the compartment and the three boys poked their heads out just in time to see three other boys cornering a smaller, mousey-haired boy with watery eyes who was cowering near the front of the carriage.

"Look at you," one of the bullies was saying. "You squib. You're pathetic!" He spat on the floor in front of the boy who was now trembling in fear. The other two bullies were drawing their wands.

"What do you say to us opening your trunk and having a little rummage," one of them sneered.

"We could show the rest of the school what a squib wears for underwear," said the third.

"Hey!" James said, striding forwards, eyes flashing as he glared at the bullies. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Hey, look squib! You've got yourself a protector," the first bully mocked. "Not that it'll do you much good." He lifted his wand. "_Loco_…"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Rabastan" Sirius growled from behind James. Remus stood next to him, nervously biting his lip.

"Black!" the boy called Rabastan said, aghast. "You're not standing up for this… this filth are you?" he asked indicating at the watery-eyed boy who was crouched behind James' leg.

"Get lost, Lestrange," Sirius yawned. "Rosier, Avery." He inclined his head towards the other two bullies. His smile did not quite reach his eyes.

The bullies looked at each other. Then they looked at the four boys opposite them. Remus could almost see the cogs working in their brains as they realised it was now four against three. The boy called Rabastan grimaced at Sirius, then turned and left, taking the other two boys with him.

"Thank you, thank you," their victim said gratefully, scrambling to his feet.

"No problem," James said. "I'm James. This is Sirius and that's Remus."

"Peter. It's my first year at Hogwarts."  
>"Ours too," Sirius said. "What did they want with you?"<p>

Peter shifted uncomfortably from foot-to-foot. "I told them that my mum's a muggle-born witch and my dad's a squib," he mumbled. "They seemed to take offence."

"What's a squib?" Remus asked.

"A non-magical person in a long-line of witches and wizards. Most muggle-born witches and wizards have squib ancestors if you look really hard. They tend to marry into the muggle population," Sirius answered. "A lot of people look down on them."  
>"We're not like that, though" James assured Peter as the train began to move. "Why don't you come and sit with us?"<p>

The four of them dragged Peter's trunk into their compartment. It was no longer empty. A red-haired girl sat next to the window, staring out onto the platform which was gradually moving away. She ignored the boys when they entered. Remus though her shoulders were a little hunched and every now and then she gave a little sniff, as though she had been crying. Remus was unsure whether he ought to say anything to her. Maybe she was simply homesick and wanted to be left alone. He could understand that. He felt a little bit like that himself. As the other boys chose their seats, he rummaged through his trunk for a book to read.

"Ah," said Sirius. "I thought you might be a bookworm. You looked like the nerdy type. No offense. Got nothing against nerds. Generally useful people to have around, actually."

Remus smiled, assuring the boy that no offense had been taken. He was actually secretly pleased. He had never been called "useful" or complimented in any other way by children his own age before.

"I'm a prankster, myself," Sirius was saying.

"Really?" James said. "So am I! I once played this trick on… I think it was my great-aunt. Anyway, she was staying over at our house and she was really annoying me. Telling me how I should behave, you know," he put on a high-pitched croaky voice, "Stand up straight, young man. Walk properly – don't drag your feet!" Sirius grinned.

"My mother's like that," he admitted. "What did you do?"

He and Peter leaned in eagerly as James continued. Even Remus found himself peeking over the top of his book to listen.

"Well," James said, clearly enjoying the attention. "Great-aunt Nora used to take these afternoon naps in a rocking chair in the Orangery. Snored like an elephant." The other three boys were rewarded with another impersonation and Sirius snorted with laughter. "Anyway," James continued. "I managed to get my hands on my dad's shaving foam and…"

"You didn't?" Sirius said, grinning so hard Remus thought his face would split. James gave him a conspirator's wink.

"Had her mouth wide open she did, snoring away," he continued, giving another impression. Peter tittered. "Deserved everything she got."

Sirius roared with laughter and James was grinning just as widely as Sirius had been. Just then a boy with black greasy hair entered the compartment. He ignored them all and as such went ignored. Instead he squeezed passed Sirius to sit opposite the red-headed girl. He seemed to know her and Remus was glad. He no longer had to worry about comforting her.

"This is it!" the boy was saying, exhilaration in his voice. "We're off to Hogwarts! You'd better be in Slytherin."  
>"Slytherin?"<p>

James had heard and had paused in his narrative to look at the greasy-haired boy with disgust.

"Who wants to be in Slytherin? I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" he asked Sirius, who had stopped laughing.

"My whole family has been in Slytherin," he said, glumly.

"Blimey," James said, shocked, "and I thought you seemed alright!"

Now Sirius grinned.

"Maybe I'll break the tradition. Where are you heading, if you've got the choice?"

James raised an invisible sword.

"_Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!_" he chanted. "Like my dad."

The greasy-haired boy gave a small, disparaging noise. James turned on him.

"Got a problem with that?"

"No," the other said, sneering. "If you'd rather be brawny than brainy…"

"Where're you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?" Sirius interrupted. James roared with laughter and Remus bit his lip. He knew neither side was in the right; both were insulting the other. He decided to stay out of it. If the insults progressed to physical violence he might step in.

The girl next to Remus stood up. She was glaring at James and Sirius.

"Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment."

"Ooooo…"

"See ya, Snivellus!"

The compartment door slammed shut. Remus quietly let out a sigh of relief. He hadn't wanted to argue with his new-found friends, or anyone else for that matter.

"Idiot," James said angrily. "Doesn't he know Slytherin is full of evil, twisted…" he stopped and glanced at Sirius. "No offence," he said, apologetically.

"None taken," Sirius said lightly, leaning back in his seat. "I'm not particularly fond of my family. In fact, I'll tell you about a trick I once played on my mother. It involved, amongst other things: a long-handled feather duster, a dead bird and a mangy, stray cat. And, the best part of it was, _I _didn't get the blame. She thought it was my younger brother. He was grounded for a _month_!"

Remus remembered the woman and younger boy who had accompanied Sirius into Madam Malkin's. They must have been his mother and brother. He thought Sirius must have been terribly brave to play a trick on her. She had seemed like the scary sort. But then again, maybe that was why he had played the trick on her in the first place: to get his own back.

He picked up his book again and settled back into his seat. Then, with half his concentration still on James and Sirius, who continued to swap stories about various pranks, he flicked to his bookmarked page and began to read.

XXX

At about half past twelve there was a clattering outside in the corridor and the compartment door slid back. A dimpled woman smiled at them.

"Anything off the trolley, dears?"

Remus, whose mother had given him a packed lunch consisting of beef and horseradish sandwiches, eyed the chocolate on the trolley. As James, Sirius and Peter made their own selections, Remus found his conscience warring with his addiction. He had found that chocolate revived him when he was feeling sleepy and calmed him down when he was nervous. He was anxious enough that it was his first day at school, but it was also coming up to the full moon and that tended to give him restless nights. Just as the trolley lady was about to leave, he came to a decision.

"Wow," James said, staring at the large pile of chocolate frogs located on Remus' lap and overflowing onto the empty seat beside him. "Do you like chocolate or do you like chocolate?"

"Um… I'm saving some for later," Remus mumbled pathetically, reaching for his trunk and trying to stuff his goodies into it."

The others laughed and Remus flinched. But it wasn't the malicious laugh the bullies at the muggle school had used. It was a warm, friendly laugh and Sirius leaned over to hit him good-naturedly on the back.

Remus blushed and smiled before opening a chocolate frog box, his beef sandwich already long forgotten.

XXX

"We must be nearly there," Sirius said. He stretched his arms and stood up, reaching inside his trunk. "Better put our robes on."

The boy pulled his muggle t-shirt off, revealing a sun-kissed, slightly toned chest. He then shrugged his black robes over his head.

Remus' stomach lurched. He thought about the self-inflicted scars that criss-crossed across his stomach, back, and arms. He couldn't change in here with the others watching. They would ask questions and then what would he say? Remus hated lying. He bit his lip nervously and slowly drew his robes out of his trunk.

"Er, I'm going to see if there's a toilet," he mumbled.

"There's one at the end of every carriage," James said helpfully, barely looking at Remus as he struggled to maintain his balance whilst pulling on a shoe. As Remus closed the compartment door behind him he heard James swear and then a crash as he fell over. Sirius' braking laughter followed him down the corridor.

He was just unlocking the bathroom door to return to his compartment when a disembodied voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train; it will be taken to the school separately."

He reached his compartment just as the train began to slow and waited outside for the other three to come out. Then they hopped off the train and onto the platform. For once, Sirius and James were being quiet. In fact, thought Remus, they looked a little pale and nervous. Part of him felt comforted by the fact that he was not alone in feeling some trepidation at the prospect of joining Hogwarts, but another part was made even more nervous by the fact that these two, loud, confident boys were themselves anxious.

Remus looked around the platform, trying to work out where they were meant to go. The majority of students were heading towards the exit where some carriages were waiting. Attached to them were the strangest creatures Remus had ever seen.

They looked a little like horses, except a hundred times more terrifying. They had big, bony bodies and dragon-like heads. White, pupil-less eyes stared out at the chattering students, expressionless. One of them stretched out two large, black leathery wings and gave them a shake, dislodging a shower of early evening dew. But, what really frightened Remus, was the fangs that hung from their upper jaw and the translucent skin that was so thin he could see the bones beneath it.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!"  
>Remus turned to see a large lantern bobbing over the heads of the students. Then he saw the man holding it and gasped.<p>

He was gigantic. And, he thought, rather hairy. His hands were as big as dustbin lids and he wore a massive moleskin overcoat which looked rather lumpy, as though it had many pockets and, in these pockets, were many objects.

The four boys made their way cautiously towards him.

"Alrigh' there. No need to be afraid. C'mon follow me. Firs' years follow me!"

The gaggle of first years followed at a distance and, somehow, Remus found himself near the front of the crowd, closest to the scary giant-man. He bit his lip nervously as they were led down a steep, narrow path.

"Hogwarts is jus' round the bend here," the giant-man said. "You'll be able t' see it in a momen'."

The narrow path opened out suddenly on the edge of a large black lake. Reflected in it, under a bright moon, was a vast castle, sprawled over the top of a high mountain.

The giant-man pointed to a small fleet of boats.

"No more'n four to a boat!" he called.

"Come on," James whispered to the others, pulling Sirius to the one furthest from the giant-man. Remus and Peter followed. When they were all in the giant-man called "Forward!" and the boats lurched across the lake, the surface of which remained as smooth as glass.

Remus felt his stomach churn. He groaned.

"Shouldn't have eaten that many chocolate frogs," Sirius said, unsympathetically, before turning to look eagerly at the castle before them. The sudden movement caused the boat to rock and Remus felt his stomach churn again.

As they reached the cliffs, Remus was forced to lean over the side as he stomach rebelled. He sat upright again just as the giant-man called "Heads down!" Dizzy, it took Remus a second too long to work out what he was saying and the next he knew he was being attacked by strands of ivory. He ducked just in time to avoid a large stalactite that hung down lower than the rest. He felt its sharp end scrape the back of his head.

Remus was glad when they finally reached solid ground. He felt his body continue to sway as he stood on the shore. James and Sirius patted him on the back awkwardly and Peter watched from a distance as though terrified Remus would throw up again.

"You alrigh'?" the giant-man said with a look of concern on his huge features. Remus, not wanting to bring attention to himself, nodded dumbly.

"Well, if you're sure…" the giant-man said before leading the first years up a flight of stone steps to a huge oak door.

"Everyone here?" he asked.

Then he raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door.


	4. Part 4

**Year 1: Part 4**

**Wednesday, September 1****st**** 1971**

The door swung inwards and, standing in its frame stood a familiar figure. Professor McGonagall surveyed the first years and beckoned for them to follow her, leaving the giant-man (whom she called Hagrid) behind.

They walked across the Entrance Hall towards another large doorway. From the other side they could hear hundreds of voices. Obviously the rest of the school was already in there, waiting for the first years to be sorted. Sirius and James walked on either side of Remus trying to keep him from swaying from side-to-side. Remus clutched their shoulders, grateful for the support. Suddenly he began to wonder what the sorting involved, and he began to feel even more ill.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," the Professor was saying. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly," (at the mention of food, Remus felt his stomach churn once more) "but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony, because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room.

"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting."  
>Her eyes swept them once again and she frowned.<p>

"Are you alright, Mr Lupin?"

Remus groaned inwardly. "Boats," he managed at the same time as Sirius said, "Too many chocolate frogs, Ma'am." Remus scowled at him.

McGonagall raised an eyebrow.

"I'll ask Madam Pomfrey to give you something," she told him. To the rest she said, "I will return when we are ready for you. Please wait _quietly_."

When she had left, Peter turned to James and Sirius.

"How _do_ they sort us?" he asked but the two boys simply shook their heads and shrugged.

Suddenly someone screamed and all four boys turned. About twenty ghosts had just streamed through the back wall.

"New students!" one of them exclaimed. He was wearing a ruff and tights. "Let me introduce myself. I'm the Fat Friar, patron ghost of Hufflepuff house." He smiled and waved at them.

"A pleasure to meet you, Sir," Sirius said, bowing, and everyone stared at him. He grinned back at them.

"What a nice lad," said another ghost and he and the others disappeared into the hall.

"Just because they're dead doesn't mean one shouldn't be polite," Sirius replied to everyone's unasked question and beside him James chuckled.

"You really are one of a kind," he said giving his new friend a high-five.

"Come along now. The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."

Professor McGonagall had returned. She looked at Remus.

"The school healer will give you something a bit later. Until then, I suggest you don't eat anything."  
>Remus nodded queasily. McGonagall then led the first years into the Great Hall. There were some gasps from the other first years as they looked around them. Remus, too, was impressed, but he was prepared for the sight having read about it first in <em>Hogwarts, A History<em>.

All attention in the room returned to Professor McGonagall as she placed a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On the stool she placed a pointy wizard's hat which was patched, frayed and extremely dirty. A number of the first years looked at it with a mixture of curiosity and disgust. A rip near the brim opened wide lie a mouth and then the hat began to sing:

"_So you think you're witty, hey?_

_Or simply rather nifty, say?_

_You know your books_

_At the expense of good looks_

_And you're rather smart_

_At the wizard's art._

_So, take a stand_

_Next to Ravenclaw's hand!_

_Or maybe you'd rather be_

_Friendship's master key?_

_You're the loyal type_

_Even if you're rather ripe,_

_Hard-working, if a little dull._

_We'll get through that thick skull!_

_You must be Hufflepuff's man,_

_A member of Helga's clan._

_Yet then again,_

_You'd rather take a different lane._

_Ambitions fill your head:_

_You'd rather lead than be led._

_Greatness you can achieve_

_(though not by Christmas Eve)_

_If you listen carefully_

_To Slytherin, rather liberally._

_They say there's a thin line –_

_Just the diameter of a dime –_

_Between what makes man brave_

_And what makes him a knave._

_But if you've got the guts_

_(Or maybe you're entirely nuts)_

_Come have a go_

_In Gryffindor, young beau!_

_So, this is that_

_The cat's out of the hat!_

_You'll join a house_

_If you're a book louse_

_Or loyal or brave_

_Or greatness you do crave._

_So step on up:_

_I'll Sort, then you'll sup!"_

The Great Hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. James and Sirius laughed out loud, Peter clapped his hands enthusiastically and even Remus felt a little better.

Professor McGonagall stepped forwards, holding a long roll of parchment.

"When I call your name," she said once the applause had died down, "you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted. Abbot, Steven!"

A blonde, pink-faced boy stumbled forwards, after a moment's pause the tear near the brim of the hat opened again.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

The table on the right cheered and the boy went to sit down, a number of older students clapping him on the back as he did so.

"Avery, Alfred!"

Remus recognised the boy as one of those who had cornered Peter on the train. There was no doubt in his mind that the boy would join his friends at the Slytherin table and sure enough that hat yelled:

"SLYTHERIN!"

A sneer curved over the boy's lips as he joined his older friends at the Slytherin table.

"Black, Sirius!"

"Good luck, mate," James whispered. "Go break tradition."

Sirius grimaced and strode forward. He sat down on the stool and Professor McGonagall began to put the hat on his head. Before it had even reached him, however, the hat had shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"

There was a moment of stunned silence and then the Gryffindor table burst into applause. On the opposite side of the room, the Slytherin table began to mumble amongst themselves. A number of teachers looked mildly surprise. One, a balding man with a large silver moustache, who Remus would later learn was the Potion's Master, Professor Slughorn, looked mildly upset as though he had lost a treasured possession.

Sirius, as always, however, seemed oblivious to all of this. He grinned and leapt off the stool, pausing to give James the thumbs up on his way to the Gryffindor table.

"Evans, Lily" became the next Gryffindor and Remus recognised her from the train. She threw her greasy-haired friend a sad smile and Remus felt a tinge of guilt for having let James and Sirius torment him earlier. Then the girl went to sit down at the Gryffindor table. He could make out Sirius moving up for her, but she simply scowled at him and sat elsewhere.

Lockhart, Gilderoy became the first Ravenclaw. With a jolt, Remus realised he must be next.

"Lupin, Remus!"

A few teachers leaned forwards with interest as Remus climbed shakily towards the stool. They all knew of Remus' condition, even though the students would not be told. He glanced at their expressions. Some of them observed him with pity; others held neutral expressions on their faces. The one he had noticed earlier, with the silver moustache, simply looked bored. At the centre of the table he noticed a man with a long silver beard and half-moon spectacles. His nose looked as though it had been broken several times and badly repaired. He appeared politely interested. This, Remus thought, must be Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster, the one who had let him into the school. Remus felt a wave of gratification towards this man. He was the one who was giving him the chance to have a normal life.

Remus sat on the stool and bit his lip nervously. Professor McGonagall placed the hat onto his head. It slipped down over his eyes.

"Ah," said a small voice in his ear. "Interesting, interesting. I haven't sorted a werewolf for, oh, it must be centuries."

Remus felt himself stiffen. How had the hat, a _hat_, known that he was a werewolf?

"Oh, but I'm not just any hat, am I? Now, where to put you…" The hat fell silent.

"You don't have any great ambitions. Wise, very wise, with all this new anti-werewolf legislation. You'd make a loyal friend… if you were to let anyone in, but that seems unlikely…"

Another silence.

"Perhaps, Ravenclaw? You certainly know your stuff."

Remus felt himself flinch. His father had been in Ravenclaw and he hated anything that reminded him of his father. I'm going to show him, he thought. I'm going to show him and the rest of the world that a werewolf can make it through Hogwarts and defeat any prejudice thrown against him.

"There's plenty of courage in here," the hat continued thoughtfully. "I wouldn't like to go through what you do every full moon. Most go mad. But you always come through. You could be courageous in other areas of life, too, if you gave it a try. Yes, yes. I think you'd better be GRYFFINDOR!"

The hat shouted the last word and Remus felt it being taken off his head. Over at the Gryffindor table he could see Sirius clapping wildly and heard him whooping loudly. Remus felt himself grinning as he stumbled forwards and sat down next to him. He received a clap on his back which made his stomach churn again, but he ignored it. He had been successfully sorted. He was going to be a wizard. Him, Remus Lupin, a werewolf, was going to be a wizard!

He looked up at the High Table, still grinning insanely, and saw Albus Dumbledore incline his head towards him.

Peter and James were then sorted into Gryffindor as well and Remus felt a surge of joy. Then Severus Snape was sorted into Slytherin. James and Sirius booed and the girl, Lily Evans, looked upset.

As soon as "York, Charlotte" had been sorted into Hufflepuff, Professor McGonagall rolled up her parchment and took the stool away. Remus saw another woman leaving the room, dressed in matron's outfit. He realised that this must be Madam Pomfrey and that, when she returned, it would be with something to settle his queasy stomach.

Albus Dumbledore rose to his feet, beaming at the students.

"Welcome!" he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts. Now, I'm sure you are all hungry and so, without further ado, let us eat."

The tables before the students were suddenly filled with food. Beside him, Remus could see Sirius rub his hands together in glee. He reached for the roast chicken at exactly the same moment as James opposite him. After a brief tug-o'-war the two of them eventually dropped the plate and broke down laughing.

Remus looked at the food, mournfully. He now really wished he hadn't eaten so much chocolate on the train. He made a mental note to ration himself. After all, who had ever heard of a fat werewolf?

"Mr Lupin?"

Remus turned to see that the matron had returned. She smiled kindly at him. She was one of the teachers who pitied him. He blushed.

"Professor McGonagall told me that the trip across the lake didn't agree with you? And that your experience wasn't helped by the large number of chocolate frogs consumed?"

Remus felt his face grow darker as he nodded. The matron clucked under her breath. She placed a capsule in his glass and poured water into it. When she had finished, the water had turned a strange blue-ish purple colour. Her tone suddenly became business-like.

"Drink all of this. And when I say 'all', Mr Lupin, I mean _all_. Then, if you must eat, eat carbohydrates." She placed a bread roll topped with sesame seeds on his plate. "No deserts. Do you understand?"

Remus nodded meekly and the nurse left. Sirius chuckled.

"Poor, ickle Remikins," he teased and Remus glared at him, which only caused Sirius to laugh harder, spraying lumps of stuffing everywhere. Across the table, James smiled widely and Peter uttered his usual titter. Remus ignored them and reached for his glass. He took a sip and grimaced. Then, remembering the nurse's instructions, he gulped it down until nothing was left.

He immediately began to feel better. He turned to join in the conversation the others were having with a friendly-looking Gryffindor prefect who had introduced himself as Frank Longbottom. He was pointing out the various teachers.

"There's the headmaster, Professor Dumbledore, obviously. And Professor McGonagall, deputy-headmistress. She's also our head-of-house. Professor Slughorn (with the moustache). He's head of Slytherin, Potion's Master. He likes to collect people with talent. Calls his little select group 'the Slug Club'. Then there's Professor Flitwick (small one). He does charms and he's head of Ravenclaw. Heard somewhere that he was part-goblin, but that might just be a rumour. He's quite friendly, never seen him lose his temper, even when Grady O'Cleirigh let loose a cage full of Irish leprechauns. Actually, I think the professor found them highly amusing..."

Sirius and James were hanging onto every word and, from what Remus had already learnt about the two of them, they were already planning what pranks they would play on what teachers.

On his other side, Remus heard the girl from the train, Lily, talking to another girl whose name was Mary MacDonald.

"I'm so confused," Mary was admitting. "I mean, I'm not from a wizarding family."

"Neither am I," Lily said. "Look, why don't we stick together? That way we can help each other out."

Mary smiled at her gratefully then saw Remus looking at them.

"Remus Lupin, right?" she hazarded and he nodded, pleased she had remembered his name.

"The one who got sea sick on the Black Lake?" she enquired.

His smile faltered a little.

"I ate too many chocolate frogs," he admitted and the girl giggled.

"I must admit, I ate a few too many sweets from that cart as well. I've never seen such a strange collection. I mean, Bertie Botts Every Flavour Bean. I didn't think… not _every_ flavour."

"Are you muggle-born as well?" Lily asked him politely. She didn't seem to remember him from the train.

"No. Half-blood. But my father left when I was young, so I don't know that much."

Lily rested her hand on his arm in sympathy and he blushed.

"Do you think we have to spend _all_ of our free time in the common room?" she asked. "Only I've got a friend in another house and there are some in Gryffindor that I'd like to avoid." She looked pointedly at Sirius and James who had just learned of the existence of a poltergeist named Peeves and were busy working on a plan to hire him for one of their pranks.

"I read in _Hogwarts, A History_ that there are various clubs, like a Gobstones club, that students from all years and houses can join."

"And students must be able to go outside on sunny days, I mean, the grounds are _huge_," Mary said. "So's the castle. So, even if it's not allowed, you can probably spend your free time somewhere in these walls without anyone even noticing."

"I don't want to break any rules," Lily said.

"It must be allowed," Remus said. "I haven't seen anything that says it isn't."

"Hey, Remus!" Sirius prodded him on the back, demanding his attention. "We're having a vote. Which is better: exploding snap or wizarding chess?"

"I prefer chess myself," said a mournful voice in Remus' ear. He looked around to see a ghost floating in midair beside him.

"Allow me to introduce myself," he said. "I am Sir Nicolas de Mimsy-Porpington, resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower."

"We get a tower?" Sirius asked, excitedly. "Brilliant. My family told me that the Slytherin Common Room was in the dungeons, which sounds thoroughly depressing to me."

"Sir Nicolas?" James said frowning. "That name rings a bell…" The ghost started to glide away quickly. "Hang on! Aren't you Nearly Headless Nick?"

The ghost sighed and turned around. "I _do_ prefer Sir Nicolas," he complained.

"_Nearly_ Headless?" Peter asked. "How can you be _Nearly_ Headless?"

Sir Nicolas demonstrated and Remus, who had just plucked up the courage to bite into his bread roll, suddenly felt sick again.

"Are you alright, young man?" the ghost asked, replacing his head on his neck. "You look awfully pale you know."

"Fine. I'm fine," Remus said faintly. He felt someone tap him on the arm. Looking around he saw Lily holding a glass of water out for him. He took it gratefully, his hands shaking. He took a few sips to calm his queasy stomach.

"It'll be brilliant to be up in a tower though, won't it," Sirius said. We'll have windows. If we just wanted to escape, we could jump on our brooms and…"

"But we aren't allowed brooms in first year," Peter protested and Sirius grinned. James caught his eye and the two burst out laughter.

"I thought I'd be the only one," James said between guffaws.

"Great minds think alike," Sirius said sagely, wiggling his eyebrows, causing James to howl with laughter.

Every face in the Great Hall turned to look at them. Even Remus, who would usually try and shrink away from the centre of attention, sat there in stunned silence.

Professor Dumbledore rose to his feet. Everyone turned their attention to him instead, realising that, whilst they had been watching the Gryffindor table, the puddings in front of them had disappeared. Dumbledore smiled.

"It's good to see that we are all enjoying ourselves," he said, his eyes glinting behind his spectacles as he bowed his head in James and Sirius' direction. Their laughter had now died down to quiet muffled giggles. "Now that we have all been fed and watered, I have a few start-of-term noticed for you all."

"Firstly, first-years, and perhaps some of you amongst the older years, should note that the forest in the grounds is forbidden to all pupils.

"I have also been reminded by our caretaker, Mr Filch, that no magic should be used in corridors between lessons.

"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of term. Anyone interested in playing for their house should contact Madam Hooch or their house Quidditch captain.

"Finally, I must warn you all that a Whomping Willow has been planted in the school grounds. For those of you who do not wish to gain a black eye, lose various limbs or meet a rather painful and sticky fate, I suggest you maintain your distance from it.

"And now, if you would all be upstanding for the school song!"

The headmaster gave his wand a little flick and a golden ribbon erupted from it. They swirled in midair until they formed the lyrics of a song.

"Everyone pick a favourite tune," Dumbledore said brightly, somehow managing to ignore the baleful expressions of the teachers on either side of him.

"That was brilliant!" James and Sirius said in unison, once the song had finished, and they grinned.

"You sure you two aren't twins?" Remus asked and Sirius punched him playfully on the shoulder.

Frank Longbottom turned to the new Gryffindor first years.

"You lot can follow me. I'll show you the way to the Common Room. There's a password to get in, so you'd best try and remember it. It'll change regularly though, so keep on your toes. It could be anything."

Remus and the others followed him out into the Great Hall and up the marble staircase. They passed through corridors full of portraits which moved and talked with one another. Passed dark recesses where suits of armour clanked as they reached up to scratch their legs or shift their position. Remus, the only one who wasn't sleepy with food, was fascinated to see that Frank had led them through hidden doorways behind age old tapestries and sliding panels.

Eventually he stopped. Sirius, who was beginning to grumble that maybe being in a tower wasn't such a great idea after all because it meant so many stairs, nearly walked into the back of Lily Evans who glowered at him. He backed away carefully.

"Golden Snidget," Frank said, loudly and clearly for the first years to hear. A portrait of a very fat lady in a silk pink dress smiled and the whole thing swung inwards, revealing a comfortable-looking common room beyond. Frank then ushered the girls through one door and the boys through another.

They climbed another staircase before they finally reached their dormitory. Sirius opened the door and they all entered. Looking around they found five four-poster beds with deep-red velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up. Remus found his next to the bed furthest from the window.

"Brilliant," said Sirius. "An extra bed. That means I can use it for any stuff that doesn't fit in my drawers."  
>"Not if I steal it first," James challenged and the two of them ran to it, jumping on top of each other.<p>

"Hey, Remus!" Sirius called. "Which one of us got here first?"  
>"It was a draw," Remus said.<p>

"How can you tell?" James demanded. "You're looking in your trunk!"

"Magic," Remus replied dryly. "I'm going to find the bathroom…"

There was a click behind him as Peter locked himself in the privy.

"Never mind," Remus muttered.

In the end he was the last to get to the bathroom. When he suggested a rota for it the others had stared at him as if he was mad. Apparently they believed in elbowing their way to the front of the queue before politeness.

Now the other three were all dropping off to sleep one-by-one. Quietly, Remus locked the door and began running the shower. Thankfully the water was magically heated, otherwise he might have found that Peter had used it all up. Then, carefully Remus stripped.

His back, legs, chest and arms were laced with scars. Most, except for the semi-circular scar on his forearm where he had been infected and gash on his thigh where Lycurgus (or, rather, Alpha) had got him during his first transformation, were self-inflicted. They were the obvious mark of a werewolf. They would never fully heal and, every now and then, they would twinge, especially when it was close to the full moon.

Remus scrubbed himself carefully in the shower. Then, despite the summer heat, he dressed himself long sleeved pyjamas which he buttoned all the way up to his chin. It was his worse fear that his newfound friends would find out what he was and reject him. He wouldn't risk them seeing his scars.

After checking himself in the mirror and gathering up his discarded robes, he left the bathroom as quietly as he could. In the bed closest to the window, James was snoring quietly. Sirius, next to him, was dead to the world. Peter whimpered in his sleep and kicked out, then fell silent again. In a few seconds, Remus, too, was asleep.


	5. Part 5

**Year 1: Part 5**

**Thursday, September 2****nd**** 1971**

_ He sniffed the air around him and the scents formed a picture in his mind. Trees ahead. River to the south. Prey to the north-west._

_ He loped forwards, following this last scent. The prey was careless, so easy to follow. He kept his pace gentle; there was no need to waste energy._

_ His prey was getting closer, he could smell them. But he couldn't see them. Not yet._

_ He heard the sound of footsteps in the boggy ground. They were getting closer and closer._

_ A breeze wafted through the trees, lifting leaves aside. Suddenly he could see them: three boys standing in front of him. They stared at him petrified._

_ He growled and leapt towards them, teeth bared. He could almost taste the satisfying meal of human flesh and he opened his jaws wide, ready to bite…_

_ The three boys lay in front of him, staring up blankly at the full moon. Remus bathed in its glow, full and content._

_ His hair stood on end. Something was coming up behind him. He twisted, just in time to see the face of Romulus, his brother, and a silver sword sliced through the air towards him…_

XXX

"Remus! Remus!"

Someone was shaking him awake. He saw a bright light through his eyelids and he blinked up, blearily.

There was a sound of relief from the figure above him.

"You were screaming," James explained, looking down at him with an expression of concern.

Remus looked around. Sirius was propped up on his elbows in bed frowning at him and Peter was peeking out from behind his curtains looking terrified.

"Sorry," Remus said. "Nightmare. I didn't mean to wake you all."

Sirius grunted and turned over. Within seconds he was snoring. Peter seemed to hesitate, then he disappeared from view.

"It's no problem," James assured Remus, patting him on the shoulder. "Um, do you need to talk about it or…"  
>"No, I'm fine," Remus said quickly and James looked relieved. "Um… what time is it?"<br>"About half six in the morning," the messy-haired boy replied. "Got at least another hour before we ought to get up."  
>Remus nodded. "I'm sorry," he said again.<p>

"Hey, don't apologise. These things happen." He smiled. "Goodnight then."  
>"Goodnight."<p>

XXX

"What the bloody hell is _that_?"

Sirius sat bolt upright in his bed, head spinning around, searching for the source of the noise. Remus' arm reached out from under his bedclothes and, after waving it around a bit, he managed to find his alarm clock and turn it off.

"What the hell?" Sirius asked him, jumping off his bed and ripping the covers off of Remus, who opened his eyes and blinked up at him. "I was asleep."  
>"It's an alarm clock," Remus explained. "It's designed to wake you up. We ought to get ready and go down to breakfast."<p>

"Yes, but, why the annoying noise?" Sirius spluttered.

"Like I said, it's designed to wake you up."

From the bed nearest the window, James sniggered.

"Does little Sirius need his beauty sleep?" he teased and Sirius turned on him.

"I'm _not _a morning person," he growled.

"We noticed."

Remus got out of bed and grabbed his robes before heading to the bathroom to change. When he came back, he saw that James was also dressed and Sirius was examining his face in the mirror, yawning every now and then.

"Hey, has anyone seen Peter?" Remus asked.

They turned to stare at the only occupied bed. The curtains were still drawn around it. Sirius' face lit up.

"I've got an idea," he said, grinning maliciously.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" James said, also grinning.

"I hope so."  
>The two of them crept towards Peter's bed.<p>

"Guys," Remus sighed. "Please be nice."

"We won't hurt him," James assured him and then he and Sirius opened the curtains and pounced on the small boy, dragging him from his bed. There was a startled shout and then the three of them tumbled onto the floor on top of each other. James and Sirius burst out laughing.

"'S not funny!" Peter was saying but then Sirius howled with laughter and James patted him on the back and suddenly Peter, too, found himself grinning.

"We're going to be late," Remus warned.

Twenty minutes later the four boys were rushing into the Great Hall. They took their places at the Gryffindor table and, by the looks of things, they were the last ones there. Fortunately, there was still plenty of food.

"Brilliant," Sirius muttered. "I'm starving."  
>"Starving?" Remus said, helping himself to a bacon sani. "You ate at least two roast chickens last night."<br>"What can I say," Sirius said, cheerfully, taking three poached eggs, two sausages and five rashers of bacon. "I'm a growing boy!"

"Yeah, I can tell which way you're growing," James said, pointing at his friend's stomach and Sirius gave him a good natured push.

There was a disapproving sound and the four boys looked up to see Professor McGonagall looking down at them.

"Your timetables," she said, handing them each a slip of paper. "Don't lose them." She turned to Remus. "Are you feeling better? Good. Madam Pomfrey would like to see you in the Hospital Wing at eight this evening. First floor, Hospital Tower."

She then turned and left.

"Why would you need to go to the Hospital Wing?" James asked, curious.

Remus winced. He hated lying, but unless he wanted to alienate his new friends he couldn't tell them the truth.

"Um… probably to check up on me after what happened yesterday," he said vaguely. He decided to change the subject.

"Hey, look, we have Charms first. That should be interesting, don't you think?"

"I can't wait for Defence Against the Dark Arts," Sirius said. "But we don't have that until Monday."

"What about Transfiguration?" asked excitedly.

"Tomorrow. Oh, but look, we have Flying lessons today."

Remus and Peter groaned in unison. James and Sirius looked up at them in shock.

"I prefer to keep my feet firmly on the ground," Remus explained. James and Sirius exchanged a conspirator's grin.

"Whatever it is you're thinking, don't do it," Remus warned and their faces fell.

Once they had finished their breakfast, the four boys hurried out of the Great Hall to the third floor. It took them a few minutes but eventually the found classroom 2E. A tiny wizard, who stood on a pile of books on his chair in order to see the class over the top of his desk, greeted them as they entered.

"Ah, yes. Mr Black, Mr Potter, Mr Pettigrew and Mr Lupin," he squeaked, ticking their names off the register. "Take a seat, put your wands away. We're just going to be learning theory today, I'm afraid."

There was a groan from the class. Remus followed the other three boys to a row of seats to the professor's left and settled himself down next to them. He didn't mind learning theory too much. The truth was, he was a little frightened he wouldn't be able to do magic when it actually came to the wand-waving business.

After Charms the four of them hurried down to the dungeons where they would be having Potions. At the door they met the Slytherin first years whom they would be sharing the class with. A divide was formed and they stared at each other across the gap.

Then someone stepped into it. Lily Evans, ignoring the stares around her, went to stand next to her greasy-haired friend who smiled at her. They started talking to each other about what they might be learning in low, excited voices. Everyone else just kept on staring.

The door to the dungeons opened suddenly and the balding Potion's Master beckoned them in, his large moustache waving, apparently of its own accord.

"Welcome, welcome!" the man said, beaming at them all as they squashed themselves onto seats. "Ah, Mr Avery. Wonderful to see you! How's your father?"  
>By the end of the class, Remus was feeling a little disgruntled. He remembered what Frank, the Gryffindor prefect had said about the Potion's Master: "He's head of Slytherin… likes to collect people with famous parents or talent. Calls his little select group 'the Slug Club'." Obviously a half-blood werewolf didn't quite fit into that category.<p>

Remus followed his friends outside to the Quidditch Training Grounds. With a jolt he remembered that it was going to be his first flying lesson. He hoped that it would be purely theory-based. The two rows of brooms lying on the ground, however, told him otherwise. A woman, whom Remus secretly thought looked a bit like a hawk, stood in the between the rows. This must be Madam Hooch whom, according to Frank Longbottom, had had a promising career in Quidditch. Now she had retired from playing professionally to become the Hogwart's coach.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" she barked. "Everyone stand by a broomstick. Come on, hurry up."  
>By the end of the lesson, Remus was shaking from head-to-foot. Peter wasn't doing much better. James and Sirius, on the other hand, were complaining loudly at how boring it had been and laughed at the expression they had seen on Severus Snape's face.<p>

"Don't be so mean," Lily Evans said, glowering, as they entered the Gryffindor Common Room. Then she and her friend Mary went to sit at a table at the back of the room, pulling out their homework. Remus made to join them but Sirius stopped him.

"What're you doing?" he asked.

"I was going to do my homework," Remus replied.

"Homework!" James cried, aghast. "It's the first day of term. And besides, it'll be the weekend soon."

"I thought it would be best to get it out of the way," Remus said, confused as the two boys dragged him upstairs to their dorm, Peter trailing behind them.

"Nah. We're going to explore."  
>They dropped off their bags and headed back out of the Common Room, through the portrait. James marched off along a corridor confidently and the others followed, Sirius grinning with excitement, Peter looking around curiously and Remus feeling apprehensive.<p>

They were soon thoroughly lost.

"I could have sworn we came through this door," James muttered.

"No, no, it was definitely that one back there," Peter said, pointing behind them, now on the verge of hysterics.

"Hurry up and make your minds up," Sirius growled. "I'm hungry and I get irritable when I miss dinner."

Someone cackled evilly behind them and a little man dressed in an orange tie and hat with bells on it appeared from behind one of the suits of armour. At first Remus thought he must be a ghost, because the man was floating in mid-air. But he looked too solid. Then, with a rush of horror, he realised what it was he was seeing.

"Oooh, are the ickle firsties a ickle lost?" Peeves the poltergeist asked, cackling manically. He swooped at them and they ducked. Remus, a little slower than the rest, got hit on the head by a purple shoe.

"Ha ha!" the poltergeist said and swooped down on them again.

"Run!" James cried and the four of them launched themselves through a doorway and sprinted through a corridor, Peeves cackling behind them. Only when they had reached a corridor they recognised, did they stop.

"I think we're outside the Charms classroom," Remus said, panting.

Sirius groaned. "That's _miles_ away from the Great Hall," he moaned as the four of them trudged down the corridor. Soon, however, James and Sirius were back to their usual joking selves and, once they had some food down them, they were once again, roaring with laughter.

XXX

After dinner the boys decided to go back to their dorm and look at their homework. Professor Flitwick had set them a short essay on the theory of levitation and Professor Slughorn had wanted them to conduct some research into the properties of Flobberworm Mucus. Remus, who had memorised all of his texts off by heart, found these tasks easy. He thought, perhaps, it was too easy and was wondering whether he should go down to the library to find some more information when Sirius, who had bored of his essay really quickly, looked over his shoulder.

"Look at this," he said to James, who was sucking his quill and staring blankly at a piece of parchment upon which he had, thus far, written his name and the date. "Remus has done it all."  
>James looked up. "Hey, Remus," he said. "I don't suppose you could give me a hand? The only thing I can think of for Sluggie's essay is that the mucus can be used as a thickening agent."<p>

"Can I have some help too?" Peter squeaked. He had been squinting at his copy of _The Standard Book of Spells: Grade One_ for the last hour.

"Can you help _all_ of us?" Sirius said, stretching his arms in a vague indication that they were all in the same boat.

Remus looked at his watch and sighed.

"I was going to go to the library, to do a bit more research. Why don't we go there tomorrow or Saturday and finish off our essays then? I've got to go for my meeting with Madam Pomfrey now, though."

"No problem," said James, snapping his books shut and rolling away his parchment, almost knocking over his ink.

"The library…" Sirius said, cringing slightly.

"That's where I'll be if you want my help," Remus warned and Sirius held up his hands in surrender.

"Thank you, Remus," Peter said, jumping to his feet and giving the other boy a hug. Remus stiffened but Peter didn't seem to notice. "I thought I'd fail Charms before I'd even begun!"

Remus disentangled himself and bid the others goodnight. He then wandered in what he thought was the direction of the Hospital Tower. Half-way up a set of stairs that were unfamiliar to him, his foot sank through the floor. He gasped and struggled to get out but the harder he struggled, the more stuck he became. He had become entrapped in one of the trick steps an older student had warned the first years about.

"Help!" he called weakly, but there was no one around.

About twenty minutes later, he heard movement behind him. He craned his neck around and saw a cat with dust-coloured fur watching him with lamp-like eyes. She would be no help at all.

"Where are you, my sweet?"

A voice echoed down the stairwell. Remus could hear someone climbing down the stairs as though with difficulty. The cat 'meowed'.

"Hello?" Remus said, tentatively.

"Who's there?" the figure said, emerging from the darkness. "A student out of bed? Well, well, well, we are in trouble, aren't we?"

Remus found himself staring into the face of Argus Filch, the caretaker, whom Frank Longbottom had warned him to avoid at all costs.

"Please, sir," he said. "I had a meeting with…"

"Don't give me excuses boy! Follow me."

Filch started back up the stairs. The cat 'meowed' once more and he looked back.

"Why aren't you following me?" he demanded.

"Please, sir," Remus said timidly, now on the verge of tears. "I-I'm stuck."  
>The caretaker looked down at Remus' leg which disappeared into apparently solid brick. Then, wrinkling his nose in disgust, he took Remus by the elbows and pulled. The boys stumbled forwards. He could feel pins-and-needles all the way up his leg.<p>

"Come," the caretaker said and Remus had no choice but to follow, the cat bringing up the rear.

Filch took him to an office off the Entrance Hall. It was a small, windowless room, full of filing cabinets and a smell that reminded Remus faintly of fried fish. A collection of manacles hung off the wall behind the desk and Remus shivered.

The caretaker grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill. Dipping it in ink he began to write.

"Name?" he asked.

"R-Remus Lupin," Remus said. He had just noticed that some of the manacles were made of silver.

"Crime… out of bed, wandering the hallways with mischievous intentions…"

"Please, sir, I wasn't. I had a meeting with Madam Pomfrey!"

"A likely story!"

"But…"

"Silence. Now, what punishment…"

"Ah, Argus, there you are."

Both Remus and the caretaker turned to see the headmaster stooping through the doorway.

"And Mr Lupin. Poppy and I were wondering where you'd got to." Filch began spluttering incoherently. It was very rarely that he came across a student who had actually been telling him the truth.

Dumbledore took Remus' shoulder, his blue eyes twinkling out from behind his half-moon spectacles.

"I'll take him from here, Argus," he said calmly, steering his charge from the room, leaving the caretaker speechless behind him.

"Now, young Remus. I don't suppose you could tell me what you did to upset poor Mr Filch?" the headmaster asked as they climbed the marble staircase in the Entrance Hall. He spoke as though discussing the weather, with a sort of vague interest and Remus was certain that he wasn't going to punish him.

"I was looking for the Hospital Wing, sir," he said, "when my foot got caught in a trick stair."

"Ah, yes. They have a habit of doing that," the professor agreed. "Why, only the other day, I was walking along, not minding where I was going and I fell through one such stair. Rather silly of me, really, since it is a staircase I have climbed almost every day since I became a professor here."

He turned to smile at Remus who couldn't help but smile back, although he was still a little shaky from his run-in with the caretaker.

"Apart from your rather unfortunate misunderstanding with Mr Filch, how have found your first day?" the headmaster asked kindly.

"Well, sir, I enjoyed Charms and Potions was fascinating…"  
>"But, no doubt, you found Horace – that is, Professor Slughorn – to be a little, shall we say, strange?"<p>

"I wasn't sure he liked me very much, sir," Remus admitted. "Or rather, he seemed to like everyone else more."

Dumbledore nodded. "He's a bit of a collector, is our Horace. But never fear, Mr Lupin, the moment you start to show some talent, he will begin to appreciate you some more. And, from what your Uncle Ezra has told Professor McGonagall, you have quite a bit of talent."

The professor looked down his long nose at Remus, who blushed. They were now walking along a corridor that Remus didn't recognise.

"How did you find your flying lesson?"

Remus blushed again. "I'm not fond of broomsticks, professor," he admitted.

"Is that – forgive my curiosity – but is that a personal preference or a common trait of lycanthropy?"

It was the first time anyone at the school had asked him about his condition. He had known that the teachers would be aware of it, of course, but he hadn't expected it to be dropped into a conversation like this so suddenly. There was a pause whilst Remus recollected himself but, if Dumbledore noticed the gap in the conversation, he did not comment upon it.

"I- I don't know," Remus said, eventually. "I- I think it's just me. Sir."

The professor smiled down at him and then opened a door. They had arrived.

XXX

As the two of them entered the Hospital Wing, the healer herself appeared from an office. She looked worried, then, seeing who her visitors were and noticing that neither were injured, she visibly relaxed.

"It's half past nine," she scolded.

"Young Remus here was waylaid through no fault of his own," Dumbledore supplied, saving Remus from the embarrassment of having to admit to being trapped in a staircase or captured by Filch. "But, we are now all here and there is no harm done." He smiled at the two of them.

Madam Pomfrey led them into her office. She locked the door and cast a silencing spell around the three of them. Dumbledore offered Remus a chair and then sat down himself.

"Now, Mr Lupin, you are aware that we have made arrangements for you to go somewhere else every full moon but have not yet been told what those arrangements are, am I correct?

Remus nodded, biting his lower lip nervously. He hated talking about his lycanthropy in front of others, but knew this conversation was necessary.

"An hour before the moon rises, you will come here, to the Hospital Wing. Poppy," he indicated to the matron, "will then escort you out of the castle. There is a small house located on the edge of Hogsmede village that we have placed wards around. An underground passageway links the school to this house, the entrance to which can be found in the school grounds. We have planted a Whomping Willow over it to prevent anyone, except you, from using that route.

"After your transformation, you will be brought back here. Any wounds you may have sustained will be taken care of and, once Poppy is content that you will heal nicely, you can return to your normal school routine. Do you have any questions?"

Remus nodded.

"Can… Are these protections… I mean, no one will be able to get in when I'm, you know, will they?"  
>The professor smiled. "I have overseen the entire project. It is as safe as it can possibly be. Unless you are foolish enough to let anyone know of the entrance, nobody should be able to get in. I trust you will not endanger anyone in such a way. Now, if you would allow Poppy to give you a quick examination, I can escort you back to bed."<p>

Madam Pomfrey indicated that Remus should remove his robes. He bit his lip. Undressing was like talking about his lycanthropy: he hated doing it because people tended to stare or treat him oddly.

"Don't be coy, young man," the matron said. "You'll still have your underwear on."

So, taking a deep breath, and taking a brief look at Dumbledore, who had his eyes closed and was humming gently under his breath, Remus struggled out of his clothes.

Madam Pomfrey clucked under her breath at the scars criss-crossing over his body.

"Some of these haven't been healed properly," she said angrily, running her finger over a long scar that ran the entire length of his back. "I'll apply some balm to them when I see you Monday morning. You can put your robes back on now. It's no worse than I was expecting, although that's not saying much. Honestly, how could St. Mungo's treat self-inflicted werewolf wounds as a low priority?"

The school nurse was still muttering under her breath when Dumbledore led Remus out of the Hospital Wing. He then escorted the boy back to the Gryffindor Common Room.

"I do hope your friends haven't waited up for you," Dumbledore said mildly. "Or all four of you won't be able to concentrate in your Astronomy class tomorrow night."

Remus thoroughly doubted that they would have stayed up for him but, when he opened the door to his dormitory, he was surprised to see that he had been wrong.

"Where've you been?" James asked, exasperated. "You said it would just be a quick check-up to make sure you weren't still feeling sick!"

"It was, but I didn't get there in time," Remus replied.

"You left early enough," Sirius pointed out.

"I got stuck in a trick stair." Remus blushed.

"Really?" James looked excited. "I thought Frank had been joking when he told us about them…"

"And then I got cornered by Filch…"  
>"He didn't give you a detention did he?" Sirius said, scowling.<p>

"No…"  
>"Good, because James and I are going to be the first in the year to get a detention."<br>"You want a detention?" Remus said, incredulously.

"No, but it would be a poor lookout for us if a nerd like you got there first. We are, after all, notorious pranksters. What would people say? We wouldn't be able to show our faces in public!"

James snorted with laughter and Peter tittered sleepily. Even Remus had to smile when Sirius said, "I'm serious!" and James replied "We know!"


	6. Part 6

**Year 1: Part 6**

**Friday, September 3****rd**** 1971**

The next day the four boys woke to find that the late sunny summer weather had broken. They groaned when they realised that they would have to brave the weather to reach the greenhouses for their Herbology lesson. After dithering in the Entrance Hall for at least ten minutes, watching older students stride confidently into the rain with waterproofing charms around them, they finally plucked up the courage to hitch up their cloaks over their heads and make a dash for it, slipping and sliding on the wet mud as they went. Peter tripped over once, causing three seventh year Slytherin students to point and laugh at him as they meandered carelessly past on their way to a Care of Magical Creatures lesson in the Forbidden Forest. James and Remus ran back to help Peter up again whilst Sirius glared at the Slytherins from the shelter of a tree.

"We really need to find a waterproofing spell," Sirius mumbled when they finally reached Greenhouse One, soaking wet and ten minutes late (much to the exasperation of Professor Sprout, the dumpy little witch who would be teaching them). The others agreed and Remus made a mental note to look for one in the library on Saturday if he had time.

It was still raining by the end of the class but, although Peter, Sirius and James were still complaining about it, Remus felt as though nothing could dampen his spirits. He had succeeded in earning fifteen points for Gryffindor by successfully identifying most of the plants Professor Sprout had shown them. The only other person who had been able to answer her questions had been the red-headed girl, Lily Evans. The two of them walked together up to the castle, a little way behind the other three boys and a little way in front of Lily's friend, Mary MacDonald, comparing the advantages and disadvantages of mooncalf dung over dragon dung as a fertilizer. This friendly argument lasted halfway through lunch until Mary stole Lily's attention to talk about hairstyling techniques. Remus felt his eyes glaze over and turned his attention back to his dorm mates who rolled their eyes at him.

"Definitely a nerd," Sirius diagnosed sagely. "Want some potato salad?"

After lunch they attempted to find their way to the Transfiguration classroom. Halfway there they were intercepted by Peeves who chased them down a narrow corridor and into an area of the castle they were unfamiliar with, causing them to be late for the second time that day.

"Honestly - what's that Poltergeist got against us?" Sirius wondered as they ran around the edge of the Middle Courtyard towards the classroom.

"He thinks we're easy targets. 'Coz we're first years," Peter replied, panting heavily.

"I say we try and make peace with him at all costs," James said. "Make a deal or something."

Remus highly doubted that any such attempt would work but was prevented by saying anything when James opened the classroom door to find a very irate Professor McGonagall on the other side.

"Peeves," Sirius explained but this did not prevent McGonagall from threatening to turn one of them into a map to stop them from getting lost in the future.

"Could she really do that, do you think?" Peter asked nervously.

"It's pretty advanced magic," Remus said. "But…"

He paused as the four of them turned to watch the Professor turn her desk into a pig.

"She can probably do it," Remus finished as the rest of the class gasped, impressed at the spectacle and eager to try it themselves. They became disappointed when the Professor ordered them to make some complicated notes on the theory behind transfiguring a matchstick into a needle. After finishing their notes, they moved onto the practicing the actual spell. By the end of the lesson, nobody had managed to complete the task, although Remus thought his match looked a little shinier than it had done to start with and James' (to everyone's surprise) was definitely a lot pointier and had gained an eye. Sirius and Peter looked at their own, unchanged, matchsticks rather forlornly.

After dinner the boys wandered back upstairs to the Gryffindor Common Room. Sirius and James were arguing over whether Peeves would accept dung bombs as a bribe to leave them alone or even help them with a few pranks. Peter was nodding enthusiastically, happy in the belief that such a plan would work but Remus just shook his head quietly, certain that it wouldn't.

"We'll show you," James and Sirius said confidently, their eyes twinkling.

The four of them went to bed early that night and Remus set his alarm for half eleven in the hope that this would get them up again in time for Astronomy class. However, it was so close to the full moon now that his sleep/wake cycle had been knocked completely out of sync and he spent the hours between nine and eleven staring up at his crimson bed hangings, listening to the snores of his fellow dorm mates. When the alarm went off, however, he pretended that he had had as good a rest as the others.

When they returned at two in the morning, Sirius and James were yawning and Peter could barely walk straight because his eyes kept drooping with sleep. The moment their heads hit the pillows they were asleep. But, far from tiring Remus out, the midnight lesson had made him restless. Sighing, he grabbed his copy of _1000 Herbs and Where to Find Them_ and curled up in the most comfortable chair in the Common Room. The rain had stopped now and, from behind the parting clouds, the waxing moon shone through the window. Shivering Remus turned his back on it stubbornly and opened his book. There was no point worrying about the full moon until it happened, he decided.

XXX

**Saturday, September 4****th**** 1971**

Remus woke up the next morning to find himself in the Common Room, which was gradually filling up with Gryffindor students, some of whom were glancing curiously in his direction. His Herbology text book had been placed thoughtfully on a table a few metres away. It was thoughtful because, if it hadn't have been placed there it would, like the rest of Remus, be dripping wet. And he was dripping wet because James and Sirius had decided it would be amusing to wake him up by dropping a bucket of cold water on his head.

Remus blinked the water out of his eyes as, behind him, he heard muffled snorts of laughter. These were interrupted by a prefect's cry of "Oi!"  
>"He doesn't mind it," James said. "Do you Remus?"<br>"It was just a bit of fun," Sirius agreed.

"I wasn't thinking of him," the prefect said angrily. "You damaged Hogwarts' property. Water stains don't come off the furniture easily you know. And, what's more, nobody else can sit in this chair until it's dry now."

James and Sirius seemed faintly amused by this and were laughing quietly about it as they helped Remus up to the dormitory in order for him to have a warm shower.

"Sorry about that, mate," James said sincerely. "You didn't mind too much, though?"  
>"We moved your book first," Sirius said proudly.<p>

"_I_ moved your book first," James corrected and Sirius pouted causing Peter, who was sitting on his bed, to giggle.

Remus wasn't sure whether or not he minded but he had seen the two jokers pull a similar prank on Peter two days previously and so he knew it wasn't personal. He also didn't want to lose his newfound friends by making them think he had no sense of humour and so he assured them that he didn't mind and hurried off quickly to have his shower.

When he came out he found the other three lazing on the floor playing Exploding Snap. By the looks of it, Peter was losing quite heavily but he didn't seem to mind too much. As Remus watched the end of the game, he began to pack his schoolbag with his half-finished homework essays.

"I'm going to the library now," he said.

Sirius grunted and began shuffling cards.

"Are you coming or do you not need help with your homework anymore."  
>"Hm? What? Oh!"<p>

The three of them scrambled to their feet.

"Don't leave without us!" James cried out dramatically.

When, at last, James had managed to dig out an ink bottle from the bottom of his pile of belongings, the four of them left the Common Room.

"So, which way?" Sirius asked and Remus shrugged. Peter groaned.

"Oh no," he said. "This is going to be a repeat of Thursday, isn't it?"

James seemed lost in thought. Suddenly, he turned around to face the portrait of the Fat Lady as though he wanted to go back into the Common Room.

"Erm, excuse me?" he said politely. He gave her a winning smile and the Fat Lady blushed.

"Yes, dear?"  
>"Can you give us directions to the library, by any chance?" James asked.<p>

A short while later the four of them entered the library. Sirius whooped with joy upon seeing that they had reached their intended destination, earning him a harsh glare and a "Shhh!" from Madam Pince, the librarian.

He ducked his head sheepishly and the four of them crept towards a section of tables hidden by some shelves. Remus carefully arranged his essays on his desk before turning to browse for books that might help him with them.

Behind him the other three watched in fascination as Remus stuck his nose into one book and then another, muttering to himself subconsciously. After a few minutes he seemed to forget that the others were there and began adding paragraphs to his essays, causing them to grow an extra two pages in length each than the teacher had specified. James, realising that Remus was no longer concentrating on them, picked up one of the finished essays and began to copy. Sirius then copied James and Peter, peering over Sirius's shoulder with difficulty, began to copy him. Every now and then James and Sirius would change a word or two in the hope that it would look more original. Peter simply missed out the longer words which he didn't understand or had difficulty spelling.

Long after Remus had finished his essays, the boy continued to read. Sirius began to grow bored. Eventually James elbowed him in the ribs and made a quiet motion that the two of them should leave.

"Other students are coming in," he said. "We don't want to ruin our reputation as pranksters before we even begin!"

And so they snuck out of the library, Peter following behind them, all three feeling slightly relieved that they no longer had to worry about any more homework and could now get down to the real business of planning pranks.

XXX


	7. Part 7

**Year 1: Part 7**

**Sunday, September 5****th**** 1971**

"I can't. I'm sorry."

James and Sirius looked down at Remus in disappointment. From across the dormitory, Peter also assumed an expression of disappointment.

"If you're worried about breaking the rules, you needn't be," Sirius said. "James has got this really cool invisibility cloak. Nobody would see us."

"Come _on_, Remus!" James insisted. "It's the _kitchens_. _The_ kitchens. The ones that are notoriously difficult to find. And we've found them in our first week."

"I can't…"

"They'll have lots of chocolate there," Sirius tried.

"It's not that I don't want to," Remus said, desperately. This was, in part, truthful (he was enticed by Sirius' promise of chocolate), but it was also a lie. He didn't want to get into trouble on his first day at school and a midnight jaunt to the kitchens was definitely a rule-breaking activity. What if he were caught? Would Professor Dumbledore decide that a werewolf was too much trouble to have at the school? "It's just…"  
>He began scrabbling around in his mind for some sort of excuse.<p>

"It's my great-aunt's 100th birthday!" he blurted out and then winced.

James frowned.

"What's _that_ got to do with anything?" he asked.

"She's having a party. I've got to go."  
>He was desperate now, sure that his new friends would see right through the lie.<p>

"You've got to go?" Sirius repeated.

"Yeah… she's a nightmare. Very old fashioned. Like… the matriarch of the family, that sorta thing..."

James and Sirius exchanged confused looks.

"I've got to go tonight. Mum wants to adjust my dress robes…"

"Dress robes?" James said. "Wow, your aunt is old-fashioned."

His frown of disappointment turned to into a look of pity.

"Well, at least you might get some good grub?" Sirius said, as though trying to cheer Remus up. "I can see why you didn't tell us about this earlier though…"  
>"You're being taken out of lessons for a birthday party?" Peter asked in disbelief.<p>

"His matriarchal great-aunt's 100th birthday," James corrected. "Boy, she really does sound like a nightmare."

Remus breathed a sigh of relief as he left the dormitory, a bag of clothes slung across his shoulders. They had believed him.

No sooner had the feeling of relief appeared, however, it vanished, replaced by a feeling of dread. This was it. The full moon was coming.

Remus' hands shook nervously. His memories of previous transformations were not pleasant. His bones would break one by one, his muscles would warp, stretching and contracting, and fur would force its way out through his skin until he lost his mind and the wolf took over. Then, the next morning, he would awake to find himself covered in blood from new, self-inflicted wounds: deep scratches and painful bites that would leave shiny scars on his body for the rest of his life. Sometimes he wouldn't wake at all and Uncle Ezra would have to whisk him away to St. Mungo's because the damage was so bad. He'd wake up a day or two later in the bite ward, observed warily from all corners by other, luckier patients.

For days before the full moon he would be restless at night, and for a week afterwards he would be constantly tired. And then, the next month, it would happen all over again.

He took a deep breath and tried to steady his hands. But there was no point. The adrenalin rush that came with the transformation had already begun, despite the fact that it was still mid-afternoon.

He tried taking another deep breath. Then, slowly, as though walking at a snail's pace would delay the inevitable, he made his way towards the Hospital Wing.

XXX

"You're early," Madam Pomfrey said when she saw Remus enter the Hospital Wing, but she did not enquire further. Perhaps the way Remus bit his lip nervously, or the fact that his eyes were wide with terror answered her unasked question effectively enough.

The Healer instructed him to cover his head with his cloak so he wouldn't be identifiable from any of the school's windows when she led him outside. Then she grabbed a portable healing kit and the two of them left the building and headed out onto the grounds.

As they were passing the greenhouses, Professor Sprout suddenly appeared from between two of them.

"Ah, Poppy," she said, spotting the matron. "I have a new batch of mandrakes on the go and I was wondering whether you needed anymore or whether I should just sell them?"  
>Madam Pomfrey paused and Remus shifted nervously from foot-to-foot behind her.<p>

"I still have quite a lot left over from last year, Pomona. But I wouldn't mind a few extra roots – just in case."

Professor Sprout smiled. "Of course," she said in a bubbly voice. Then lowering it, she looked directly at Remus' eyes under the cloak's hood, her own full of pity.

"Good luck, Mr Lupin," she whispered and touched his arm before disappearing into one of the greenhouses.

He and Madam Pomfrey then continued on their way.

Halfway between Hagrid's groundskeeper's hut and the greenhouses, and out of sight of most of Hogwarts' windows, stood the Whomping Willow. It stood immobile, as though acting the part of an average non-sentient willow tree. The only thing that gave it away as Remus and his nurse grew nearer, was the quick snatch it made at a passing owl which hooted indignantly as it lost a few minor tail feathers.

Madam Pomfrey reached into her portable healing kit and drew out a long wooden walking stick which should not have been able to fit quite so easily into such a small bag. But Remus was too nervous now to really notice such things.

"Stay here," she told him before taking a step forward herself. Then, staying just beyond the Willow's reach, she leaned forward and touched something at the base of the tree. The branches that had formed fists and were shaking themselves at the student and nurse, suddenly stopped moving.

"It's been immobilised," the matron explained. "You'll find the tunnel entrance at the base of the tree."

She then watched as Remus moved towards the Willow cautiously. When it did not attack him, he hurried forwards more confidently. Then, looking at the base of the trunk, he saw a large gap. He looked into it but saw only darkness.

"Try _Lumos_," Madam Pomfrey said kindly. He did and a light formed at the end of his wand. A small section of the tunnel was lit up, but beyond it he could still see nothing but solid darkness.

"Go on," Madam Pomfrey said encouragingly. "The tunnel will close behind you and the tree will remobilise. You'll find the house at the other end. I think you'll like it. It's quite spacious. I believe Professor Dumbledore also had it furnished, especially for you. He seemed to think it might help."

Remus nodded, not really concentration on what she was saying. Then, taking a deep breath and one, last look at the fading sunlight, he crawled into the tunnel.

XXX 

The tunnel was very long and remained very dark throughout Remus' journey. Professor Dumbledore had told him that the house was located at the edge of Hogsmede, but Remus had little idea just how far Hogsmede really was from the school. He began to wonder whether there really was a house at all, or whether he would have to transform in this narrow, low-ceilinged passage way.

Then the tunnel began to rise. Moments later it twisted and Remus could see a patch of dim light through a small opening. He raised his lit wand to see what lay beyond.

It was a room. Quite a tidy room, with rose-coloured wallpaper. A table stood at the centre with four chairs around it. It looked as though it may once have been a dining room. Remus thought that, if not for the boarded-up windows, it would have been quite a homely place.

Clambering out of the passageway, Remus moved around the room, curious about his new surroundings. He glanced through a gap in the boarded windows and saw that there was still a little while before moonrise. He decided to use that time to explore the rest of the house.

He found a hallway. A kitchen and living room branched off from it. Both were furnished in a simple, but homely manner. He climbed some stairs which creaked slightly. A carpet ran down the length of the narrow landing. He opened the door on his right and found a small bathroom, decorated green. The other two rooms revealed a small and a large bedroom. In the latter there was a magnificent four-poster bed with bright hangings. A wardrobe stood opposite it, an iron key in its lock.

As Remus unlocked the cupboard he felt his hands begin to shake, more vigorously now. Quickly, he pulled his cloak and robes over his head and stuffed them into his bag. He placed his wand more neatly on top of the clothes. Then, with difficulty, he clambered out of his underwear. He threw the bag into the wardrobe and locked it, just in time.

A sharp pain erupted from his left forearm. He screamed. The transformation had begun.

XXX


	8. Part 8

**Year 1: Part 8**

**Monday, September 6****th**** 1971**

With consciousness came pain. It ripped through his body and his brain tried desperately to work out where and how badly he was hurt.

His eyes were closed and his squeezed them. He clenched his teeth, hissing in pain. He felt something wet on his hands and the metallic smell, so familiar to him, told him it was blood. His own blood.

The ground beneath him was hard but not cold. A wooden floor. For a moment he was confused. The shed he had used at home had a concrete base, which was always cool to the touch. Then he remembered he was not at home anymore.

He opened his eyes, though the pain had not yet subsided, and looked around.

He was on the landing. The door to the larger bedroom was ajar and, inside, he could see the four-poster, only it was looking less magnificent now. A large chunk had been torn from the frame and feathers lay on the floor everywhere. The wonderful, homely feel of the house vanished and he felt guilt welling up inside of him. Dumbledore had spent a lot of effort furnishing this place for him and he had gone and ruined it in the first night.

He heard noises below and the sound of voices floated towards him. Madam Pomfrey was coming to take him to the Hospital Wing and, by the sound of it; she had brought the headmaster with her.

Remus began to panic. He was lying, naked, on the floor in the remains of what had been a gift for him. Desperately he tried to scramble to his feet, but fell back with a groan as pain erupted across his chest.

"Remus?"

A cautious voice called up the staircase.

"J-just a minute!" he called back, gasping at the pain.

He rolled over onto his front with a grunt and tried to drag himself across the floor towards the cupboard. But the pain was too much. He cried out and tears began to fill his eyes.

Two pairs of footsteps hurried up the stairs. Panic overcame pain and he began pulling himself towards the cupboard again.

There was a gasp – Madam Pomfrey – and then a gentle hand grasped his shoulder, stopping his progress. He lay quite still, petrified, panting. He was too afraid to look up and see the horrified expression and the accusing eyes he was so sure he would find on the face of the man who had helped him so much already.

"I-I'm sorry," he choked tearfully. "I d-didn't mean to r-ruin it all."

"Ruin it? My dear boy, I placed the furniture here for the wolf to ruin. I thought it might distract him from attacking _you_."

Remus looked up in surprise. Behind the half-moon spectacles, blue eyes twinkled in amusement.

"Now, why don't you let Poppy have a look at you."

The old man climbed steadily to his feet as the matron rushed forwards.

"What were you thinking?" she scolded. "Dragging yourself across the floor like that. The infections you could pick up! The damage you could have caused yourself!"

The nurse began to check him over and he lay there passively. He suddenly felt very, very tired.

"I'm going to put you on a stretcher and take you up to the Hospital Wing," the matron said. "These wounds are too serious to correct with a basic portable healing kit."

"My bag…" Remus croaked.

"The headmaster has it. Here…"

A feeling of lightness spread over the boy as he was lifted up off the ground and placed on the stretcher that the matron had just created out of thin air. A blanket streamed from her wand and wrapped itself around him.

It's so warm, Remus thought, as the three of them made their way back downstairs and along the tunnel. The stretcher swung gently as they moved. So comfortable, he though.

He was asleep before they'd even reached the Whomping Willow.

XXX

Remus was released from the Hospital Wing later that evening. He had woken about lunchtime and, realising the time, had tried to leave.

"But I've missed my first Defence class!" he said desperately as Madam Pomfrey forced him back onto the bed. "I can't miss History of Magic as well!"

"You're teachers have been informed," she told him strictly. "You can discuss what you missed with them at another time and I'm sure you can copy some notes from one of your classmates. But now you must rest. Otherwise you won't be able to heal as much as you should do."

When she had let him go, it was with strict instructions that he was to apply a balm to all of his scars three times a day and not to over-exert himself in anyway.

"That means no flying lessons for at least a week" (Remus breathed a sigh of relief) "no running down corridors, no staying up late… You need plenty of rest. That means you shouldn't go to your Astronomy class this evening. Yes, I know you don't want to miss another class but the consequences of disobeying me will be far greater than skipping the occasional Astronomy lesson. I'll have a word with Professor Skye for you."

When the lecture had at last finished, Remus rushed from the Hospital Wing as fast as he could without actually running, conscious of the matron's eyes on his back. He then made his way quickly back to his Gryffindor dormitory.

"Remus!"

A hand slapped him on the shoulder and he winced inwardly. He was sure that Sirius was only trying to be friendly, but such an slap would hurt even if he weren't injured.

"How was the party?"  
>Party? What party? After a moment's confusion he suddenly remembered the cover story he had used.<p>

"It was OK," he said, trying to escape Sirius' grasp in order to get into bed.

"OK? Doesn't sound like it." James said, looking concerned. "And you look _awful_. Didn't you get any sleep at all?"

"Erm…"

"Man, I really don't want to meet your great-aunt," Peter said, looking terrified.

"What did you guys do in lessons today," Remus said hurriedly, trying to change the topic.

"Defence and then History," James said in a bored tone.

"History is taught by this really boring old man called Professor Binns," Peter offered.

"And the lesson was as dry as he was," James added. "You didn't miss much."

"Defence was cool, though," Sirius said.

"You're only saying that because you fancy the Professor," James teased.

"Sure you're not talking about yourself?"

"Me?"

"I saw the way you were staring at her all lesson…"  
>"She's a teacher. You're meant to look at teachers during the lesson. Shows you're concentrating on what they're saying."<br>"But most people don't stare _and_ drool."  
>James hit Sirius over the head with a pillow and the latter roared with pretend fury. Remus, remembering Madam Pomfrey's instructions not to over exert himself, decided to hid behind his cupboard until the fight was over. Then, realising he was not going to get any useful information out of his dorm mate about either of their lessons, he informed them that he wouldn't be going to Astronomy and got into bed. Within seconds, he was asleep.<p>

XXX


	9. Part 9

**Year 1: Part 9**

**Tuesday, September 7****th**** 1971**

"You can't be tired already!" Sirius exclaimed. "You went to bed early yesterday."

"_And_ you didn't come to Astronomy," James added.

Remus simply shrugged.

"Besides," James began. "You wouldn't come with us to the kitchens on Sunday."

"And we couldn't do it yesterday 'coz of Astronomy," Sirius added

"So we had to reschedule our raid to a day you could do: today," James finished.

"Er…"

"You've got to come," Peter said. "We're all doing it together. It's like we're bonding. Becoming real friends. That sorta thing."

At that point, Remus surrendered. The three of them had been gradually wearing him down all day. The promise of chocolate, of real friendship and the fact that he was simply too tired to argue, had finally done its trick.

So, at half-past midnight, when everyone else in the Common Room had finally gone to bed, the four of them crouched under James invisibility cloak. They only just fit and Remus was thankful that Peter was so short.

The walk to the kitchens was long and Remus jumped every time he heard a noise. Once, they saw the retreating back of Professor Flitwick. The tiny man peered curiously over his shoulder, but, seeing nothing merely shrugged to himself and continued on his way. Remus let loose a sigh of relief.

"Relax Remus," James whispered.

Eventually the four of them reached the Entrance Hall. Glancing cautiously around they stole across the large open space and through a doorway which Remus had often noticed Hufflepuff students using.

They found themselves in a broad, stone-corridor brightly lit with torches and decorated with cheerful paintings of food.

"Looks like we're in the right place," Sirius said appreciatively as James removed the cloak and tucked it into his pockets.

"Er… how did you guys know where the kitchen was, anyway?" Remus asked, cursing himself for not having thought of this question earlier.

"Fabian and Gideon Prewett," James stated.

"Who?"

"Oh, come on Remus!" Sirius exclaimed. He lowered his voice when the others hushed him. "You know, _the _Prewetts. The most famous pranksters of all time."

"Apart from us," James inserted.

"Apart from us," Sirius agreed.

"We're not famous yet," Peter reminded them.

Sirius shrugged as though that fact was unimportant before continuing with his tale.

"Anyways, the Prewetts have taken a back seat to pranking this year," he said. "They're taking their NEWTs. Want to become Aurors. But they were more than happy to give us a few tips to help us on our way."  
>"Right," Remus said, unable to quench the uncertainty that was building up steadily inside of him.<p>

Suddenly James pulled the four of them to a halt.

"Here it is," he whispered in an excited tone.

The four of them stared at a picture of a gigantic silver fruit bowl.

Silver, Remus thought. Why does it have to be silver?

"So, what do we do now?" Peter asked, sounding nervous.

"Well, Fabian said we just had to tickle the pear…" James began.

"And Gideon said that we would then have to pass a test to enter," Sirius finished.

"Test? What sort of test?" Remus' mouth was dry.

"I'm not sure. He mentioned something about trolls guarding the entrance to prevent students from entering," Sirius said, frowning. The he reached up towards a huge green pear. Remus grabbed his arm.

"Trolls?" he breathed. He didn't notice that James had reached for the pear at the same time as Sirius and was now tickling it, but the sound of chuckling made him turn back towards the painting, just in time to see James pull at a green door handle to reveal…

A high-ceilinged room, as large as the Great Hall, filled with brass pots and pans hanging from stone walls. There was a brick fireplace at the far end and five tables, which Remus guessed represented the four houses and the staff tables in the Hall above. Then he noticed the small creatures, each dressed in a tea-towel stamped with the Hogwarts crest, that had paused mid-activity – whether it be stirring cake mixture or sweeping the floor – to turn and look at the four boys standing in the doorway.

"Those aren't trolls," Remus said.

"House elves!" Sirius cried beaming as the four of them clambered into the room. More quietly he said, "I am going to _kill_ Gideon."  
>"Would the young sirs like a pot of tea?" one house elf asked politely.<p>

"Yes please!" Peter piped up.

"Er… do you have any hot chocolate?" Remus tried experimentally. He had heard about house elves and knew a little about their stance in the wizarding world, but he had never actually met one before.

"I'm feeling a little peckish, myself," Sirius said thoughtfully.

Instantly a crowd of house elves appeared bearing a silver tray laden with a teapot, three cups and saucers and one mug full of hot chocolate and topped with cream. Another crowd of house-elves emerged from the far side of the kitchen with a large selection of cold meats, a variety of fruits, and a choice of cakes, biscuits and sweets.

The boys' eyes widened as one. Peter was so excited he nearly fainted.

"Wow," Remus breathed.

"This is fantastic!" Sirius said, beaming and grabbing a cauldron cake. "Back at home we have this one house elf – Kreacher – but he's even grumpier than a wet cat and fifty times as mean. But this…!"

The long-haired boy made a motion that encompassed the entire kitchen and the smiling elves.

"Happy to be of service, sir," one elf squeaked. "Do the young sirs require anything else?"

"Yeah, uh, listen," James said, glancing at the plate of cakes hungrily. "Do you have a basket we could carry all this in or…"  
>Before he had finished speaking three more elves appeared, each holding a basket of a different size. James selected the largest and the elves crowded around to help load it.<p>

Remus watched all this with fascination. He had carefully removed his mug of chocolate from the silver tray and the beverage had done its magic. He no longer felt tired, but revitalised and calm. He even helped himself to one of the biscuits.

"Those house elves really are eager, aren't they?" Sirius said as they retraced their steps back to the Gryffindor Common Room.

"They even promised not to tell anyone we had been there," James agreed.

"That chocolate was the best I've ever had," Remus said dreamily.

"I feel really full," Peter complained. "And this basket is really heavy."

They reached the Common Room without incident and collapsed heavily into the four chairs nearest the fire.

"Our first night-time raid," James said, looking over at them proudly.

"We didn't get caught," Remus said, amazed. "And it was actually rather, you know, fun, breaking the rules a little bit."

"See! What did we tell you?" Sirius said, giving him a friendly thump on the back. Remus flinched and gave him a crooked smile.

"So, we're like friends now?" Peter asked, excited. "Real friends?"  
>"I reckon so," James said nodding. "Hey! We should give ourselves a name. You know: the Prewetts are, well, the Prewetts so we should be…"<p>

"The Gryffindors?" Sirius suggested, frowning as though he had already rejected the idea.

"Nah. We need something more daring. More cool. More…"  
>"The Pranksters?"<p>

"Too obvious. We want something with a nice ring to it. Something that sounds… sophisticated."

"The Sophisticated Pranksters?"

James elbowed Sirius in the ribs. Peter was rummaging through the basket of food they had brought back. He was simply content that he was part of a group now and not simply an outsider. He didn't really care what that group was named.

"What about the Marauders?"  
>James and Sirius stopped trying to tread on each others toes to stare at Remus. Even Peter stopped nibbling at a pork pie to look at the sandy-haired boy. Remus blushed.<p>

"The Marauders?" James said placing his hand in the centre of the circle of chairs.

"The Marauders," Sirius agreed, putting his hand on top of James'.

"The Marauders!" Peter squeaked, spluttering them all with fragments of pastry and minced sausage as he added his own hand to the pile.

Remus smiled. Never in his wildest dreams had he ever imagined that Hogwarts was going to be this… interesting. Still smiling, he added his hand to the pile.

"The Marauders."

It was going to get a lot more interesting yet.


	10. Part 10

**Year 1: Part 10**

**Wednesday, September 8****th**** 1971**

When Remus' alarm went off the next morning, Sirius threw a pillow at him from across the room. Despite having his eyes closed, Sirius' aim was remarkably good and, despite his fatigue, the throw was still forceful enough to cause Remus to let loose a muffled 'Ouch!'

Peter blinked across at them blearily before rolling over and going back to sleep. James continued to snore through the entire encounter. Remus flailed wildly for the alarm clock and turned it off.

Just one more minute, he thought.

It was ten past nine when the three of them rushed into the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, panting heavily. The rest of the class, which had been busy copying notes from the blackboard, looked up to stare at them, causing Remus to blush. Then he noticed the woman at the front of the class and began to blush even more.

She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her pale skin seemed to glow and her golden hair seemed to flash like jewels in the light cast by the late summer sun through the window behind her. And her eyes… he had never seen such a deep blue.

But those eyes weren't looking at him with the soft tenderness one might expect from such eyes. They were filled with pure hatred and Remus had a feeling that it wasn't simply because he was late that she felt that way towards him; he could also detect a flicker of fear. He bit his lip nervously.

"Sorry we're late Professor Childe," James said smoothly and the woman turned to face him, the hatred in her eyes dimming to anger.

"You're _ten minutes_ late, Mr Potter. Five points from Gryffindor, each." There was a groan from the Gryffindor members of the class.

"Mr Lupin." Professor Childe turned her attention back to Remus and the hate and fear returned, causing him to flinch back. "I would have thought that, after missing your first ever lesson of Defence Against the Dark Arts, you would have made more of an attempt to make a good impression today. Obviously I was wrong to expect such high standards from you."  
>There was a brief snickering from the Slytherin students in the room.<p>

"S-sorry, professor," Remus mumbled.

"It wasn't his fault he missed the first lesson," James argued, in an attempt to stand up for his new friend. "And it's our fault he's late, not his."

Remus was surprised by James' comradeship and, though he was grateful for it, he could also see the pointlessness of it. He didn't want to get his new friends into trouble and so opened his mouth to argue that, actually, it was all _his_ fault. Before he could say anything, however, Sirius had elbowed him in the ribs.

"When one Marauder's in trouble, we're all in trouble," he growled. "We never have to go through anything alone."

Remus grimaced inwardly, thinking of his transformations. But I don't have to be alone for everything, he thought. Perhaps I ought to accept the help of the other Marauders whilst it lasts.

The professor ignored James and continued to glare at Remus.

"I suppose it's pointless for me to expect that you've caught up on what you missed last lesson, or that you've read the first chapter of your text book in preparation for this lesson?"

Remus thought of his pitiful attempt to ask the other Marauders what had happened in Monday's lesson. At least, he thought, I have read the chapter.

He had, in fact, read the entire book over the summer holidays and memorised parts of it off by heart.

"I-I've r-read the chapter," he told the angry beautiful woman before him.

"Then you'll be able to tell me what the difference is between a hex and a jinx?" the professor asked, doubt resounding in her voice.

It took Remus only a moment to recall the exact wording of the textbook.

"A jinx is a spell designed to produce negative effects on its target. They may cause a minor amount of discomfort such as the production of pimples on the skin or the prevention of apparition. Jinxes are generally used for defensive purposes.

"A hex, on the other hand, tends to be used for offensive purposes. Hexes are very similar to jinxes, but the amount of discomfort caused by a hex is larger than that of a jinx and, thus, they are considered to be of Darker magic than that of a jinx but not as Dark as a curse."

The classroom fell silent as Remus finished his recitation and he blushed further and continued to bite his lip.

Professor Childe was quick to regain her composure.

"I see that you can, at least, read," she sneered. "But understanding what is written is a different matter."

"Mr Potter," she snapped suddenly. "You shall sit next to Mr Avery here at the front. Mr Mulciber, Mr Pettigrew, you will sit together on the bench at the back right corner. Mr Black, with Mr Snape and Mr Lupin with Miss Evans." Professor Childe threw an endearing glance at the red-head. "Miss Evans here is a model student. You would do well to follow her example. And I'm sure, if you ask nicely, she will let you copy her notes from last week."

Lily Evans smiled shyly and Remus breathed a sigh of relief as he moved to sit next to her. He didn't envy the other Marauders who grumpily went to sit next to their appointed partners. He was sure the Slytherins wouldn't make great conversationalists.

Ten minutes later a scream from the back of the room caused the lesson to be interrupted for a second time. All turned in their seats to see Peter Pettigrew fly backwards across the classroom.

"Sorry Professor," Mulciber drawled. "I was practicing my wand movement for the Flipendo jinx but Pettigrew must have got in my way."

"I applaud your eagerness, Mr Mulciber," Childe said, "But you should not practice spells without my authorisation. Mr Pettigrew, if you're hurt, remove yourself from this room and seek out Madam Pomfrey in the Hospital Wing. If not, please stop your whimpering and return to your seat."

Peter took one terrified look at the bench next to Mulciber and fled from the room.

"Now, as I was saying," Childe began but before she could finish her sentence there was a loud bang as Mulciber re-enacted Peter's flying act.

"Who?" Childe demanded, glaring angrily around the room. Her eyes were instantly drawn to the suspiciously innocent expression on James' face.

"Mr Potter," she began but at that moment there was another bang and it was Avery who was now flying across the room.

"Mr Black!"

The professor's face was now purple with rage. Sirius looked at her and, like James, he was the perfect picture of innocence.

"He was pulling his wand out, Professor," he said smoothly.

"Liar."

Severus Snape, the boy who had been insulting James and Sirius on the train, had joined in the argument. Sirius turned on him.

"And what would you know about it, _Snivellus_?" he goaded. "With all that greasy hair, it's a miracle you can see to the end of your nose."

"Why you…"

"I'm not even sure he can see that far, Sirius," James added, thoughtfully. Remus felt a feeling of dread stir in the pit of his stomach. "I mean, look at that nose. It's so long."

Snape's eyes were bulging furiously and Professor Childe looked as though she was going to explode at any moment.

"Yeah, what's wrong with it?" Sirius taunted. "Have a run-in with an engorgement charm or something?"  
>Snape's wand was in his hand before either of them could blink. He pointed it straight at Sirius' heart.<p>

"Immobulus!"

The entire class was suddenly frozen in place.

"Never!" Professor Childe said. "Never in all my years of teaching have I ever seen such behaviour. Mr Potter, Mr Black, Mr Snape, detention. Report to Mr Filch in the trophy room at seven this evening. Mr Avery, Mr Mulciber, get to the Hospital Wing now. Mr Snape, remain where you are. Mr Black, to the back of the room. Mr Potter, to the front."

She released the freezing charm.

"Now!" she ordered and the named individuals hurried to their assigned places. As he passed Remus, Sirius gave him a little wink and a toothy grin. Remus felt faint.

Well, he thought. They had wanted to get a detention before him. And at least now he could be sure of a nice quiet night.


	11. Part 11

**Year 1: Part 11**

**Thursday, September 9****th**** 1971**

Despite the detention the previous night, all four Marauders managed to make it to breakfast on time the next morning, although each of them would wish fervently that they hadn't.

Sirius had just managed to spread a liberal amount of damson jam onto his toast when a large owl swooped down suddenly and dropped something straight onto it.

"Ah, what?" Sirius exclaimed, peeling the now sticky envelope off of his toast. Then he caught sight of the envelope and his face paled.

"Is that a Howler?" James asked nervously.

"A what?" Remus asked.

The envelope began to smoke at the corners and Remus decided that, whatever a Howler was, it couldn't be good.

"Bet it's from my mum…" Sirius groaned, and cautiously began to open the letter.

A roar of sound suddenly filled the Great Hall. Those closest to the Marauders jumped and everyone turned around to stare.

"TOLD YOU TO WRITE TO US AS SOON AS YOU'D BEEN SORTED BUT NO, WE HAD TO HAVE THE NEWS FROM ABRAXAS MALFOY. GRYFFINDOR! FOR GENERATIONS THE BLACKS HAVE BEEN PLACED IN SLYTHERIN HOUSE. WE THOUGHT ABRAXAS MUST BE MISTAKEN. BUT THEN WE HEAR FROM NARCISSSA THAT YOU ARE IN GRYFFINDOR AND, NOT ONLY THAT, BUT YOU'VE BEEN CONSORTING WITH BLOOD TRAITORS AND SQUIB'S SPAWN! HOW COULD YOU BRING SUCH SHAME UPON YOUR OWN FAMILY?"

Sirius's jaw clenched as the roar continued.

"BUT YOU DID NOT STOP THERE DID YOU, SIRIUS ORION BLACK? OH NO. WE HAD A LETTER LAST NIGHT FROM YOUR HEAD OF HOUSE TO TELL US THAT YOU'VE BEEN BRAWLING, IN CLASS, WITH MEMBERS OF SLYTHERIN HOUSE. YOUR OWN FAMILY'S HOUSE! YOUR OWN KINSMEN! I THOUGHT I'D DIE OF SHAME!

"IF YOU DON'T START BEHAVING LIKE A TRUE PUREBLOOD GENTLEMAN SOON, MR BLACK, THEN YOU CAN FORGET ABOUT YOUR INHERITANCE! YOUR BROTHER REGULUS WOULD _NEVER_ ACT LIKE THIS!"

And, with one final ear-piercing screech, the letter at last, fell silent. The scarlet envelope burst into bright flames and curled into ashes in what had once been Sirius' jam sandwich.

"Pleasant woman, your mother, is she?" James asked casually, flicking grey ash off his bacon sarnie.

"Charming," Sirius croaked giving James a shaky smile in a brave attempt to regain his composure. "Er… how many lessons do we have with Slytherin today?" he asked Remus.

"Two: Potions and Flying."  
>Sirius swore vehemently.<p>

And, as it turned out, his reaction was not without reason. Everywhere the quartet went that day they were followed by the sound of snickering from the Slytherin students they passed. But it wasn't just Sirius they were aiming their insults at.

"Blood traitor," one fifth year hissed at James.

"Squib's spawn," another said, sneering at Peter who blanched and hid behind Remus' robes.

And, as if the Howler and the subsequent snide remarks weren't enough, the teachers had also discovered that four of their first year students had handed in identical essays.

Professor Flitwick had handled this by handing back every essay except for the Marauders'. He had then asked the four of them to stay at the end of class. Remus was puzzled and glanced at the other three. James and Sirius didn't look too bothered. Both of them were yawning their heads off from the night before. Peter's face was scrunched up in concentration as he made attempt after attempt to perfect the wrist movement required for the levitation charm. Remus shrugged mentally and turned his attention back to his own wand waving, only pausing to look up again when Lily Evans' perfect 'swish and flick' caused the professor to squeak in excitement.

As the rest of the class filed out of the room, the four boys went to stand in front of Flitwick's desk.

"I marked a very impressive essay last night," the professor said, face impassive. "An essay which I gave top marks. I then marked the same essay three more times. What I want to know is: who wrote the original? And what made the rest of you believe that I was a fool and would not notice that you'd been copying each others' work?"

Remus frowned in confusion. He was clueless as to what the professor was talking about. Then he looked at the guilty faces of the other three Marauders and it clicked.

"Remus offered to help us with our homework, professor," James tried to explain. "And we, uh, took him too literally."

Despite what Frank Longbottom had told the Marauders at the Welcome Feast the week before, Professor Flitwick could (and did) lose his temper. Peter, James and Sirius lost ten points between them and gained another detention. Remus was excused since it had become clear to Flitwick that he hadn't been aware of what the other three had done.

"Please tell me you didn't copy my Potion's essay as well," Remus begged as they hurried towards the dungeons. The guilty silence that followed this plea was more than enough of an answer. He groaned.

Slughorn's approach was very different to Flitwick's. He looked at James and Sirius with an expression of deep disappointment. He didn't seem surprised that Peter had taken part and his eyes skimmed over Remus as though he wasn't there. He then told the four of them to redo the essay and hand it to them the next day. And woe betide the four of them if he found they had copied each other's work again.

"I don't believe it!" Sirius muttered as they set up their cauldrons on the bench furthest from Slughorn's desk. "Another detention _and_ extra homework."

"The worst is yet to come, Sirius, my friend," James said ominously and Peter looked up at him nervously.

"W-What do you mean?" he stuttered.

"McGonagall," James replied and Remus groaned.

"You didn't copy _those_ essays as well?"

The other three nodded morosely.

"You've got to tell her," Remus said. "Apologise."

"Are you mad?" Sirius hissed. "She might not have noticed. If we told her…" "Of course she's noticed. She's McGonagall!"

"I'm going to have to agree with Remus on this one, Sirius," James said. "Maybe we ought to go to her today, and Sprout, and apologise. It might not decrease our sentence by much, we'll probably still end up with detentions from now until Halloween, but it'll get Remus out of trouble and we owe him that much for helping us out with our homework in the first place."  
>Reluctantly the other three agreed and so it was that, as soon as class was over, they dragged themselves out of the room and towards McGonagall's office. They hadn't gone far, however, when a familiar, loud, sneering voice, stopped them in their tracks.<p>

"Like I said: Potter and his friends haven't got a brain between them. Imagine, copying each other's homework so _obviously_! And Black! How could _anyone_ be stupid enough to lose their inheritance as quickly as he is?"  
>Snape was leaning casually against the cold walls, surrounded by several other students, including Mulciber and the three bullies that had cornered Peter on the Hogwart's Express. Remus remembered that Sirius had called one of them Rabastan Lestrange and another Rosier and the last was Avery. Before he had time to identify any of the other figures, however, he heard Sirius growl beside him.<p>

"No," he hissed, grabbing his friend's arm as the latter reached for his wand. "Not here. Slughorn will see."

The Potion's Master had indeed just emerged from his classroom. He beamed at the Slytherin students before him. They smiled back, though one or two of them looked disappointed. They had obviously planned for Sirius to lose his temper and get caught hexing them and were frustrated that Remus had foiled them.

"Remus is right. We'll get him another way," James said, as they began to walk away again. "With a real prank. One that no one will be able to forget in a hurry." He caught Sirius' eye and the two of them grinned mischievously. Remus groaned internally and wondered what excuse he could come up with to avoid participating in such a prank. But he knew, even as he prepared his lies, that he wouldn't sit this one out. In the end, curiosity – and a desire to maintain his new friendship – would get the better of him. He only hoped that they wouldn't get into too much trouble.


	12. Part 12

**Year 1: Part 12**

**Friday, September 17****th**** 1971**

The meeting with McGonagall hadn't gone well, nor had the meeting with Professor Sprout. Peter, James and Sirius were now subject to a full week of detentions and, whenever they weren't cleaning the trophy room without magic under the unblinking gaze of the caretaker or re-wrapping bandages in the Hospital Wing for Madam Pomfrey, they were busy reading about the uses of newt's eyes or writing essays on the theory of transfiguring metals in a desperate attempt to keep up with the extra work their teachers had set them. Remus would stay up long enough to give them advice with such essays (though he never let them see the ones he had written) but he was always asleep when they came back from their detentions. He often felt guilty about this. After all, they had stayed up for him on the first night of school. But he needed to catch up on the sleep he had missed on the last full moon and the other three boys seemed to realise that Remus needed his sleep and never brought the subject up.

It wasn't until the following Friday afternoon, therefore, that the four boys were at last able to sit down and plan their first real prank.

Remus had hoped that the Slytherins would grow tired of tormenting the four of them but, although a few of the older ones had grown bored relatively quickly, the first year Slytherins had not. And, out of all of them, Snape was most definitely the worst.

"Can't we just murder him?" Sirius growled.

"Now where's the fun in that?" James asked. "We want him to learn from his mistakes, after all."  
>The two boys had shared a cunning smile.<p>

"We want something that's obviously directed at him," James said, his tone surprisingly serious. "What are his most distinguishing features?"  
>"He's an annoying git," Sirius suggested and a smile tugged at James' lips.<p>

"I was thinking of his physical features."

"Well, he's got very greasy hair," Peter said. "All the time. It's like he never showers."  
>James and Sirius stared at Peter who looked suddenly embarrassed.<p>

"What?"

Sirius grasped the smaller boy's shoulders enthusiastically.

"Peter," he said. "You are bloody brilliant!"

"Hey, Remus, can you write this down," James said, stuffing a piece of parchment and a quill into Remus' hands. Dutifully, the boy wrote the phrases: 'greasy hair' and 'never showers'. He had a strange feeling he knew where this was going.

XXX

The four of them ate dinner quickly that night. To Remus' surprise, Sirius, who was always hungry, hadn't complained when the others had refused to let him eat seconds. Perhaps he was too excited about the prank to be hungry. Remus certainly felt that way. It was the reason why he had refused Lily when she had offered to hand him a portion of chocolate brownie for dessert.

"But he _always_ has chocolate brownie for dessert," he had heard her mutter as he and the others had risen from their seats.

Once in the Entrance Hall, the four of them quickly hid behind a suit of armour. James pulled the invisibility cloak out of his pocket and the four of them had ducked underneath it and waited.

A lone Hufflepuff second-year exited the hall, but they ignored him. A few minutes later, a trio of Ravenclaw girls walked past them and up the marble staircase, but still they waited. At last, a group of Slytherins appeared and walked off in the direction of the dungeons. The waiting Marauders followed quietly.

As the Slytherins moved deeper and deeper under the school, the Marauders stayed with them. Eventually, the group stopped before a stretch of bare, damp stone wall. Remus could almost feel the excitement emanating from the other three boys as the Marauders tip-toed closer.

"Unforgivable Curses," a Slytherin boy said clearly and a stone door concealed in the wall slid open. The Slytherins marched through it and the four Marauders hurried forwards. Sirius quickly raised a camera as the door began to slide shut again.

"Got it," he said triumphantly and the four of them, still hidden by the cloak, ran back to Gryffindor Tower. Once there, Remus retrieved the parchment James had given to him that afternoon. It was no longer empty and now outlined various plots and back-up plans demonstrated through the use of hurried scribbling and rough diagrams. To this Remus now added the Slytherin password 'Unforgivable Curses'.

"Remember," James was saying. "All passwords are changed every Sunday at midnight. We'll have to act fast to get this prank done in time. Now, Sirius, let's see that picture."

It was half-past eleven when they finished developing the photo Sirius had captured. It wasn't of particularly good quality because Sirius had had to take it from under the cloak with the flash off to avoid attracting attention. The four of them could, however, make out a long, low underground room with rough stone walls. Round lamps hung from the ceiling, releasing a sluggish green glow. An elaborately carved fireplace could just about be seen through the crowd of Slytherin students at the far end of the room. These students, merely dark figures in the picture, were separating. Those with long hair in pony tails – the girls, the Marauders decided – were heading to the right of the room, whereas those figures which appeared to have shorter hair – the boys, the Marauders deducted – were heading towards a doorway just visible in the left of the picture.

Remus quickly tucked the photo and their plans into the pocket of his robes and the four of them ran from the dormitories to the Astronomy Tower where they arrived for their lesson only one minute late. Professor Skye pretended not to notice and, panting for breath the four Marauders set up their telescopes.

Remus smiled as he looked up at the moon. It had nearly waned completely. Soon it would be a new moon; the time when his humanity was at its peak strength.

The lesson finished and the class filed down the stairs. As planned, Peter pretended to fumble with his telescope, as though he was having difficulty closing it. The other three Marauders were to act as the good friends and wait for him. As he waited, Remus saw Lily look towards the four of them, suspicion written all over her face. He bit his lip nervously and was quietly thankful when Mary MacDonald distracted the red-haired girl.

"What are you still doing here?" Professor Skye demanded. "Shoo!"

The four of them fled. At the bottom of the stairs they paused, however, and Sirius quickly checked that the Professor had not followed them.

"Safe," he said and James immediately pulled out the invisibility cloak.

Wrapping it around themselves the four of them started forwards, more slowly now. It would ruin their plans completely if one of their feet was visible and a teacher happened across them.

They had reached the third floor when they heard a quiet 'meow' behind them.

The Marauders froze. Then, very slowly, they turned.

Mrs Norris, the caretaker's cat, was staring up at them. Straight at them. Remus felt his breath freeze in his throat. Could the cat see through invisibility cloaks? In the distance the sound of dreaded footsteps could be heard. Filch was coming.

Remus felt someone tug on his robes and the four of them stumbled away as quickly as they could. Mrs Norris continued to stare at them until they turned the corner and they did not stop until they had reached the Entrance Hall. Panting for breath they looked around cautiously before heading towards the kitchens.

"Back again, young sirs?" a house-elf inquired. "We house-elves _do_ like visitors. Would you like some chocolate brownie?"

It took all of Remus' self-control to shake his head.

"We're not here for food," James said. "We were wondering whether you had any large buckets we could borrow."

The elves rushed into action and returned with a selection. James chose the three lightest buckets. Then the four of them bade the elves farewell and left.

Now the game became more risky. The bulk of the buckets meant that the four of them could no longer fit under the cloak. Instead Remus, James and Sirius carried one bucket each whilst Peter scouted their path ahead with the cloak. It was a nerve-racking experience and, when they finally reached the blank wall that hid the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room, they breathed a sigh of relief.

James stepped forwards to utter the password but Remus held him back.

"Wait! What if someone's awake?"  
>"At one o'clock in the morning?" Sirius scoffed.<p>

"Well, we're awake aren't we?" was Remus' reply.

There was a pause and then James turned to Peter.

"Take a look for us, could you?" he asked.

Sirius, James and Remus quickly ducked into a nearby room as the invisible Peter took a deep breath and murmured the password.

The hidden door slid open revealing, to the Marauders' delight, an empty Common Room.

"Let's go," James whispered.

They crept into the Common Room. Silently, the invisible Peter moved to the doorway to the left. The other three ducked behind the sofas, just in case.

"Clear," Peter murmured. He opened the first door on his right. There was a moment's silence. Then his head appeared in mid-air before them.

"I found them," he mouthed. "Asleep."

Quickly, the boys sprung into action. From his school bag, Sirius pulled a large bundle of rope and a penknife. These two objects he had brought with him to Hogwarts.

"One can never have enough rope," he'd told them. "Ruddy useful stuff. Especially when it comes to pulling off a prank."

At the same time James and Peter began to uncork the bottles of wizarding shampoo that they had hidden in bags.

"Mmmm, lemon," James whispered as he began to fill the three buckets. "Hope he likes the smell."

Meanwhile, Remus gently removed a tiny bottle from his own bag. This red hair dye was James' addition to the prank. He'd 'borrowed' it from his mother when he'd left home.

"Something to remember her by," he'd told the others, causing Sirius to snort with laughter. "Shame to use it on some greasy git, but he needs it more than I do," James had added charitably.

Remus placed a generous drop into each bucket. He held his thumbs up when he had finished and Sirius nodded. He motioned that the others should help him to lift the buckets.

Together the four of them crept into the Slytherin first-year boys' dormitories. It looked, to their dismay, fairly normal. A family photo here, a pair of abandoned underpants there, one lone sock hanging from a chair. And the boys themselves were not sleeping in compromising positions or snoring particularly loudly. The lump that Remus identified as Snape had his mouth open revealing a thin line of drool, but it wasn't particularly amusing or disgusting. Just, normal.

Quietly and efficiently, Sirius directed the other three Marauders until they had succeeded in setting up their trap. As soon as one of their three victims tried to get out of bed the next morning, they would be doused in foamy shampoo and, if they tried to wash it out, they would soon find themselves slowly turning ginger.

Satisfied over a job well done, the four Gryffindors picked up their belongings and headed back towards their Common Room.

XXX


	13. Part 13

**Year 1: Part 13**

**Saturday, September 18****th**** 1971**

"Hungarian Horntail," James said confidently to the portrait. His words were greeted only by snores.

"Hungarian Horntail," he tried again, this time a little louder, pulling the cloak off the four of them at the same time.

The fat lady opened one bleary eye.

"It's two o'clock in the morning," she accused. "What _are_ you doing up at such a time?"

"Acting charitably," Sirius said, flashing one of his charming smiles in her direction. The portrait sighed wearily.

"Oh all right, I'll let you in," she grumbled and the picture swung forwards allowing the four boys to clamber inside.

"Brilliant," Sirius said, grinning. "Bloody brilliant. I can't wait till…"

He stopped suddenly, and the grin faded slowly from his face. Eyes wide with fear, Remus followed his gaze.

In the corner of the room stood Lily Evans, arms crossed, legs apart, glaring at the four of them with the sort of ferocity that Remus felt sure only a dragon could possess. Unconsciously, he flinched backwards away from her.

"_Where_ have you lot been?" she demanded. "And _what_ were you thinking?"

"It's, er, Evans, right?" James asked. "Rosie Evans?"

"_Lily_," the irate girl snarled.

"Well, er, Evans, I'm touched that you're so concerned for our safety but…"  
>"I don't care whether you live or die, Potter!" she said. "But if you must go and do something stupid, please don't risk the house cup to do it. You've already lost more house points than the rest of first year put together!"<p>

And with that the girl turned on her heel and marched up the stairs that led to the girls' dormitories. For a while the four boys continued to stare at where she'd been standing.

"Do… Do you think she'll tell?" Remus asked nervously.

"Nah, no evidence," Sirius said, but he looked uncertain.

"Plus, she doesn't want us to lose house points," James pointed out. "But even if she does tell, it was worth it."

Sirius' grin returned.

"Oh I can't wait for breakfast!"

XXX

Snape, Avery and Mulciber turned up late to breakfast the next morning. Rumour had it that they had gone to visit Madam Pomfrey to have the hair dye removed, but she had sent them away. She was a Healer, not a hairdresser.

They had then sought out Professor Slughorn. Unfortunately for them, it was a Saturday and the head of Slytherin enjoyed the lie-ins that the weekend offered.

So now, driven by hunger, they had entered the Great Hall and, of course, it being a Saturday, it was full of late-comers who had all wanted that extra half hour lie-in.

The muttering acted like a Mexican wave, travelling up and down the Hall, gathering volume as it went. Next, was the sound of shuffling as people stood up or leaned backwards to get a better look. Then there was the occasional stifled giggle. And then the not-so-stifled giggles.

Remus had to admit, the outcome was better than he had expected. The three Slytherin boys sat down to a crescendo of laughter as everyone in the Hall caught sight of their hair.

Each of them had been hit. Mulciber was the least affected. He now sprouted a full head of auburn hair and even had ginger-tinged eyebrows. He glowered out at the hall from under a fringe of ruby locks.

Snape, though not completely ginger, had fared worse than Mulciber. He had obviously tried to dodge the incoming attack and so only on half of his hair and one half of an eyebrow had been changed by the dye. The overall effect made him look like a badly put together patchwork quilt.

Avery, it seemed, had managed to make the connection that, when the shampoo was mixed with water, his hair would change colour. And so, he hadn't washed his hair. The viscous liquid oozed down his back and sat on his shoulders like a giant slug. From the expression on his face, it seemed to be dawning on him that, eventually, he would have to wash it off.

Rumour reached the Gryffindor table. Apparently the red-headed trio now smelt strongly of citrus.

This was the last straw for Sirius. He let loose a loud guffaw and suddenly the rest of the hall was laughing along with him once more.

XXX

It had taken Professor McGonagall a good ten minutes to get the student population to quieten down enough so that she could talk to the three Slytherins without having to shout. Remus wondered if she knew her whispered conversation with the boys was being reported across the room.

"What happened?" she demanded.

"Someone had put buckets above our beds filled with…" Avery mumbled, lips barely moving and, across the hall, Remus could see him indicating at the gooey shampoo on his head.

"We tried to wash it off," Mulciber added. "But it turned out hair red."

"Do you know who put the buckets there?"

The three boys shook their heads.

"Professor," Mulciber said desperately as McGonagall pursed her lips and turned to move away. "Can you change our hair back?"  
>She gave a curt nod and Remus watched as she waved her wand over their heads. Nothing happened.<p>

"I'm afraid that this is a very potent hair dye," she had said eventually. "It should wear off by itself in about a month."

"A _month_!"

Snape's look of horror, combined with the raising of his half-ginger eyebrow, caused the hall to erupt in laughter once more and this time McGonagall could do little to prevent it.

XXX

Later that day, Remus found himself alone in the library. He had failed to persuade the others to join him.

"We're the Marauders," Sirius had said, as though it had explained everything. "We only go to the library if we're carrying out a prank or after curfew whilst under the cover of the invisibility cloak. We should never actually be _seen_ doing work. It would undermine our reputation as the best ever Hogwarts pranksters!"

"You can go, though" James said. "You'll gain the reputation as the brains behind the Marauders."  
>"Yeah," Sirius had agreed. "James can be chairman, I'll be quartermaster, you can be the secretary and Pete's the scout. By the way, can you give me a few pointers on this essay for Defence? I have got a clue how <em>Flipendo<em> has been used effectively by wizards in past duels."

And so Remus had sighed and told Sirius to read pages nineteen through to twenty-five of the text book and then he'd made his way through the Hogwarts corridors to the library. He would never admit it, but he was secretly glad of this time alone. He greatly appreciated having his new friends but he was still unused to have people around him 24/7. And then there was the fact that this was a library – a quiet place – and his friends, James and Sirius especially, were, well, _not_ quiet. And then one must remember what happened last time they came to the library with him. A week's worth of detentions for them and an unhealthy dose of embarrassment for him because they'd copied his essays.

Lost in such thoughts he stood browsing the shelves. He was just about to pick up a rather large and interesting-looking text on the goblin rebellion that he was sure would help him with his history class when the sound of familiar voices permeated his thoughts.

"I just wish I knew who did it!" Snape was saying. It sounded to Remus as though he was forcing the words between clenched teeth; he was barely making a sound at all. If Remus hadn't have possessed a werewolf's excellent hearing he was sure he wouldn't have heard the conversation at all.

"I think I might know," his companion said just as quietly and Remus bit his lip nervously. It was Lily.

"Who?" Snape demanded.

"Well, I can't be sure, but Potter, Black and the other two were out after curfew last night. I caught them coming back to the Gryffindor Common Room at two in the morning."

Snape was silent for a moment.

"It can't be them," he said eventually. "They wouldn't have been able to get into the Slytherin dormitories. There's a password…"

He trailed off. Passwords could, after all, be guessed. Or maybe somebody was bribed or, perhaps, was threatened for the password.

"I don't have any proof, of course," Lily was saying. "And I guessed there would be some sort of protection around the Slytherin Common Room to prevent anyone from other houses from getting in. In fact, I wouldn't have mentioned it at all. It's just that," her eyes danced around the room and Remus shrank back behind the shelves.

"It's just that they smelled – very strongly – of lemons."

XXX


	14. Part 14

**Year 1: Part 14**

**Sunday, October 3****rd**** 1971**

Without any hard evidence, Snape was unable to inform any teachers of the Marauders' involvement with the hair dyeing incident, but he certainly kept a close eye on the four of them after that. Lily, on the other hand, was more vociferous.

"Why do you pick on him?" she asked them, after cornering them in the Charms corridor after class. "What's he done to you?"  
>"He tried to curse us!" Sirius accused. "Plus, he's a Slytherin."<br>Remus suspected that, had Sirius omitted this last comment, the red-headed girl might have been more inclined to forgive them. Instead she shot him a glare that, if looks could kill, would have been the end of him, and stalked off down the corridor.

"What is it with her?" Sirius said, exasperated.

"Probably aiming for Head Girl," James said, shrugging. "It'll be best to avoid her."  
>And so the boys had done their best. However, when the next full moon came round, Remus realised that he would have to talk to her in order to get some decent notes from the lessons he would miss. His relationship with Professor Childe had not improved and he desperately needed to show her he was capable of keeping up with his studies.<p>

So, whilst the other Marauders lounged in the dorm, he found himself in the Common Room, peering around the older students and trying to catch sight of her auburn hair. He found her in the far corner of the room, head in a book. Her friend, Mary, had a bored expression on her face and was staring into the fire. She looked up when Remus approached and smiled at him.

"Oh, hi Remus," she said brightly, causing Lily to glance up.

"Hi," Remus responded.

Mary's face fell. "You're here for nerds' talk, aren't you?" she asked him dully.

He gave her an apologetic look and she rose to her feet.

"Well, I'm going to bed. Here, have my chair," Mary said, emphasising her point with a dainty yawn and waving her hand towards the seat she had just vacated. When she had left, Remus sat down and glanced at Lily. She was scribbling a note in the corner of her book and he waited until she had finished. After all, he knew there was nothing worse than a half-finished thought.

"Why do you hang around with Potter and the other two, Remus?" she asked as she finished. "You're too good for them."

"They're good friends," Remus said. "Look, Lily, I've got to go away tomorrow night and I'm not sure how long I'll be gone. Could you take notes for me if I miss class?"

"Sure, if you try and stop the others from pranking Sev."

Remus grimaced. "I make no promises, but I'll try."

"Well, that's a start. Where are you going, by the way?"

"Er, great-aunt's funeral."  
>"Oh, I'm sorry."<p>

Lily' apology seemed genuine and Remus felt a twist of guilt about lying to her. She might be the bane of the Marauders but she was a nice girl. He smiled at her as he left and she smiled back before burying her head once more in her book.

"Your great-aunt?" Sirius asked. "Not the same great-aunt who turned one hundred last month?"  
>Remus nodded.<p>

"Blimey," James said, ruffling his hair. "Doesn't give you much of a break, does she?"

"Probably the excitement of having a party," Peter said thoughtfully.

"Anyway," said James, changing the subject. "I've been thinking…" (Sirius raised his eyebrows and muttered a quiet, "Uh-oh" which James ignored). "…We ought to create a code of conduct before we pull any more pranks."  
>"A Marauder's Code?" Peter asked. "I like that. It makes it sound more official."<p>

"Yes," Sirius agreed. "Because we're not just some pranksters, we're the _best_ pranksters. We have _class_."

He wiggled his dark eyebrows enthusiastically causing the other three boys to break down into laughter.

James clapped his hands, bringing them all to order. "OK, then," he said, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. "Remus, we'll need parchment..."  
>A few hours later the once empty parchment was now overflowing with black ink. Several items had been crossed out and re-written and, once the others had gone to bed, Remus produced a clean parchment and re-wrote the list:<p>

_The Marauder's Code_

_If one Marauder is in trouble, then all Marauders are in trouble. (A Marauder never has to go through anything alone)._

Remus smiled sadly at this first point. If only, he thought to himself.

_What belongs to one Marauder, belongs to all. (This includes clothes, food, broomsticks, books and ink. Exceptions: girls and, on occasion, the invisibility cloak)._

_There are no secrets amongst Marauders._

Remus had made no comment against this one. If his three new friends found out about his secret, he would be thrown out of the Marauders anyway.

_Never betray a fellow Marauder by telling their secrets to an outsider._

_Never tease or prank a fellow Marauder. _

_Tidy your side of the dorm. Don't expect another Marauder to do it for you and don't invade another Marauder's space._

Remus was particularly fond of this one. He had only that morning, woken up to find a selection of Sirius' dirty underpants forming a mattress around his bed.

_Don't complete homework in public. Don't visit the library unless after curfew and under the invisibility cloak. (Exception: Remus)._

_Don't eat too much chocolate (Especially: Remus)._

_Attempt to make an ally of Peeves at EVERY opportunity._

James and Sirius had had another run in with the poltergeist the week before. Their attempts had been unsuccessful. The sickly stench of dungbombs rising from their persons had been enough to inform Remus of _that_. The two boys, however, had stiffly refused to comment.

_Aim pranks at: Slytherins, Filch, prefects (Exception: Gryffindor Prefects) and teachers only. (Exception: school-wide pranks). _

According to the original parchment, the words 'especially Snivellus' were mean to come after 'Slytherins', but Remus, conscious of his recent promise to Lily, conscientiously left them the name out.

_Never prank Dumbledore (because he might expel us and it probably wouldn't work anyway). Play nice pranks on McGonagall (she is our head of house, after all). Respect Madame Pomfrey (because she's the one who'll stitch us back up again if a prank goes wrong)._

_Never let a girl interfere with Marauder business._

Sirius' addition. Remus wondered why.

_And lastly,_

_ALWAYS BE UP TO NO GOOD!_

_If a Marauder breaks the code he must accept punishment or leave the Marauders. The punishment for breaking the code is to complete three dares as laid out by the each of the three remaining Marauders. _

Remus finished writing with a sigh. He had agreed nervously with the others when they had decided what form the punishment should take. He really hoped he would never have to carry such a punishment out. He was that any dares set by James and Sirius would put him on the path that led directly to Trouble. Still, Peter was right when he said that the code made their friendship seem more official. Remus could almost kid himself into believing that they would still be his friends even if they knew his secret. _Almost_.

XXX


	15. Part 15

**Year 1: Part 15**

**Wednesday, October 6****th**** 1971**

As September had changed into October, the weather grew gradually worse and with the change in weather, came a change in the wolf. He was particularly violent that full moon and Remus was forced to stay in the Hospital Wing for two days. He had come prepared this time, though, and was busy reading a third-year text book he had found in the library. By the time Madam Pomfrey released him, he was sure he would know what to do if he ever encountered a boggart.

When he got back that night he found his three friends huddled in a corner in their dorm. They looked up guiltily upon his entrance, but immediately relaxed when they realised he was not a teacher or a prefect.

Remus, who was tired but fed up of being bed-bound, sat down cross-legged between them.

"What's up?" he asked wearily and more than a little warily.

"Well," said James, eyes twinkling mischievously behind his round glasses. "We've been thinking and have decided that the time has come for us to try our hands out at a school-wide prank."

"You know, now that we actually know a few spells," Sirius said.

"We can levitate small objects and transfigure matchsticks into needles," Remus said incredulously.

"You'd be amazed at what one can do with the simplest of spells, Remus," Sirius said sagely.

"We'd have to put a lot of planning into this prank, anyway," James added. "By the time we've figured out the details we'll probably be able to levitate something a bit bigger than a feather, like a book or a desk."  
>"But why would we want to levitate a desk?"<p>

"We could make castles out of them at the back of classrooms," Peter suggested, jumping up and down where he sat in excitement.

"Nah," Sirius said. "Too easily dismantled."

"You've got the right idea, though," James said and Peter blushed from the praise.

The three of them started throwing ideas into the air and Remus sighed. He dug out a piece of parchment from the nearest school bag (which turned out to be Sirius' thus increasing the difficulty of his task), and began dutifully jotting down their plans. Soon, though, he had forgotten how tired he was and how stupid he was for getting involved in such a prank. He was far too caught up in the excitement, too full of ideas of his own.

And so the four boys sat and plotted and planned and the night wore on.

XXX

**Sunday, 31****st**** October 1971**

Halloween had seemed like the logical date for their plans to be put in motion and, of course, since it was Halloween, the logical time to act was after nightfall.

"And after the feast," Sirius had added forcefully.

And so it was that, whilst all the other Gryffindor students headed into their dorms, stomachs filled to the brim and heads nodding sleepily, the four Marauders stayed in the Common Room, tense with excitement. When at last they were alone, James and Sirius slipped into their dorm. They returned with broomsticks in their hands. Winking to the other two, they opened the Common Room windows wide, allowing a fresh Autumn breeze to blow into the room. Remus shivered, but not from the cold. The moon outside was almost full.

"See you at target number one," James whispered before he and Sirius clambered onto their brooms and squeezed themselves out of the window. Remus watched as they dropped and then steadied themselves, before disappearing from view. Peter closed the window after them.

Remus pulled James' invisibility cloak from his pocket. He stared at it for a moment.

I really shouldn't be doing this, he thought weakly before giving himself a mental shrug and throwing the cloak over both himself and Peter.

"Who's there?" the Fat Lady called, as the two of them crept out of the portrait hole. They ignored her and made their way slowly towards the History of Magic classroom.

The door was closed when they reached it. The two of them paused, both more than a little nervous. Then, tentatively, Peter stretched out his hand and lifted the latch.

The door creaked open, causing the two of them to jump. But there was no one to hear it and they let out a sigh of relief. As they entered the classroom, Remus pulled himself free of the cloak. Peter remained under it, peering through a crack in the door, acting the part of sentry. Sirius had discovered that the smaller boy had a talent for making realistic animal noises. If Peter thought their position was going to be compromised, he was to utter a rat's squeak and the four of them would dart for cover.

The window was stiff and difficult to open, but eventually he managed it. He then stuck his hand out of the window and lit it using the _lumos_ spell three times. Seconds later the pink, grinning faces of James and Sirius had appeared.

Remus nodded nervously in greeting, then turned his back.

"Wingardium Leviosa," he whispered hoarsely, pointing his wand and the desk nearest to him.

As it rose into the air, Remus felt himself relax. The sneaking around after dark was nerve racking, but this was magic, something which he was born to do. It came to him with such ease that it was difficult to be nervous anymore.

He manoeuvred the table out of the window. James and Sirius grabbed it on either side and nodded at Remus. He ended the charm and the two fliers and the table rose upwards until they were out of sight. Remus waited with baited breath.

"It worked," James mouthed when the two returned, now table-less, and Remus let loose a sigh of relief before handing them the next table.

It was a slow process, but eventually the entire History classroom was free from tables. But it was not over yet.

The boys continued around the school until each one of their classrooms, bar the Herbology Greenhouses, were free from desks. Then, after a quick high-five and a promise to see Remus and Peter in the Common Rooms, James and Sirius disappeared once more into the night.

Remus and Peter snuck back out into the corridors. A rosy pink tinge was appearing in the skies outside the windows and they quickened their pace, their feet slapping gently on the stone floors.

"What was that?" a voice asked suddenly from the darkness ahead of them and the two of them froze.

They were in one of the winding corridors that would lead them from the Defence Against the Dark Arts tower and into a small hallway not far from the Gryffindor Common Room. It was a shortcut the four of them had discovered only a few weeks before; the corridor was closed off at either ends by doors concealed as tapestries.

"I didn't hear anything," a second voice said. Remus felt his heart miss a beat. Professor Childe! The woman already hated him and would love the excuse to throw him into a detention.

He felt Peter's hand take hold of his and the smaller boy dragged him into a recess behind a suit of armour. Just in time too, for, only a millisecond later two figures appeared from the gloom, only a centimetre away from where they had been standing.

Professor Childe stared into the darkness before her. "Lumos," she muttered and Remus cringed back as the light forced its way towards them. But, under the cloak, he had nothing to be afraid of.

"Nothing," the professor said.

"I could have sworn I heard something," her companion muttered nervously. He was a boy, a student by the looks of him, perhaps in his seventh year, with wavy blonde hair. Beneath his clothes, Remus could see rippling muscles which indicated that the boy was probably a Quidditch player.

"Probably just my imagination," he said, swinging upwards on his toes and smiling down at the professor.

The woman smiled back before turning her wand light out. Remus heard the two of them walk away.

"That was close," he whispered and heard Peter murmur his agreement before the two of them set off once again, more slowly this time.

XXX

"What took you so long?" Sirius asked when the two of them climbed back through the portrait hole. "We've been waiting for _ages_."

"Nearly ran into Professor Childe and some seventh year," Remus said as the four of them snuck back into their dorm.

"Seventh year? Wonder what he was doing out at this time of night," James pondered.

"No idea. Could've been a prefect, I suppose. Or maybe he needed to talk about his homework with her."

"At five in the morning?"

"I don't think it was anything like that," Peter said. Then, looking directly at Remus, he asked, "Didn't you notice?"

Remus frowned. "Notice what?"

Peter rubbed his nose absently before answering in a quiet whisper.

"They were holding hands."

XXX


	16. Part 16

**Year 1: Part 16**

**Monday, November 1****st**** 1971**

What with the discovery Peter and Remus had made last night, and the fact that they were so tired, the four boys had almost forgotten about their nightly pranking exercise when they stumbled wearily down to breakfast the next morning. It was not until the caretaker, Mr Filch, shuffled hurriedly down the centre of the Great Hall that they stopped arguing about Professor Childe's possible love affair and looked up at the teachers' table expectantly.

Professor Dumbledore was not present and so it into McGonagall's ear that Filch whispered urgently. The four Marauders saw her frowning slightly below her pointed witch's hat. She then turned to Professor Flitwick who was sitting next to her and began murmuring to him. The small man shrugged and shook his head. McGonagall frowned once more then, rising to her feet, she swept from the room, Filch running along behind her, whilst Flitwick passed the message down the table to the rest of the teachers.

The Marauders had arrived uncharacteristically early for breakfast (they had decided that there was no point going to sleep the night before) and so were able to relax as they watched the scene play out before them.

About half an hour after she had left, McGonagall returned looking furious, with Dumbledore close behind her. The headmaster looked rather unfazed by the events. In fact, Remus was sure that he could see a faintly amused sparkle in his eyes.

As he reached the high table, the other teachers rose and gathered round him. They appeared to be asking him questions, to which Dumbledore answered with nods and a few quiet words.

By this point in time, the Hall was almost full of students. Most were yawning or piling eggs onto their plates, but a few were glancing at the conversing teachers, puzzled looks on their faces, as though they had worked out that something was wrong and were uncertain whether to start panicking or begin celebrating.

Two red-headed tall and lanky seventh years slotted themselves down on the bench next to James.

"What d'you reckon?" one of them asked nodding in the direction of the teachers but before the black-haired boy had time to answer, the teachers ended their debate and Dumbledore called for quiet.

"It would appear," he announced to the thoroughly baffled student population, "that many of the school's desks have disappeared. Since such pieces of furniture play a huge role in your education, it is vital that they be found. I therefore ask that all teachers and prefects help in the search and, as such, all lessons shall be cancelled until these desks be returned or replaced."

There was a gentle muttering throughout the Hall and then, gradually, a cheer rose into the air.

"Brilliant," said one of the red-haired seventh years, grinning widely.

"Can't have been Peeves," the other mused, also grinning.

"And it wasn't us," said the first. "Though I wish we _had_ thought of it. It's inspired."

"Original," the other agreed.

"Brilliant," they said together and beside them, unnoticed, the four young Marauders smiled.

XXX

After breakfast the four Marauders rushed back upstairs to their dormitories. The news of an unexpected free day had already made its way to the Common Room and, as they passed through, Remus could see Lily Evans hovering near the entrance to the girl's dorms, a strange expression on her face, as though she was uncertain whether to laugh or cry.

As soon as they had shut their dorm door behind them, the four boys exploded into laughter.

"Did you see their faces?" Sirius asked, his eyes dancing wildly.

"Old Filch running?" James added, pulling off his glasses in order to wipe away the tears running down his cheeks.

"The Prewett's expressions!" Peter said, awe-stricken.

"We'll miss Defence!" Remus said rebelliously.

"It's a shame no one will ever know who did it," Sirius said sadly.

"Yeah…" James said, replacing his glasses but then he stopped suddenly and a slow grin spread across his face. Remus felt his stomach flip nervously.

"What?" he asked, biting his lip, but James didn't answer. Instead, he leapt towards his school bag and pulled out a scrap bit of parchment and a quill. Then, tongue between his teeth, he scrawled something down.

"Sound alright?" he asked, shoving the parchment towards the other three.

_To whom it may concern,_

_ Enjoy your day off!  
>With love,<em>

_ The Marauders _

_ x x x x_

"Brilliant," Sirius said with a grin and Peter nodded enthusiastically. Remus, with his new-found rebellious streak, found it hard to disagree with them. Nobody except the four of them knew that they had termed themselves 'the Marauders' and thus the chances of them getting into trouble were extremely low. Yet, at the same time, by putting their signature out there, the four boys would gain some secret satisfaction from the whole affair.

"See you in a minute," James said, grabbing his invisibility cloak, some spellotape and his broomstick, before unlatching the window and launching himself outside. When he returned, his cheeks were pink from the chill wind but he was grinning widely and held his thumbs up.

Now all they could do was sit and wait.

XXX

The Gryffindor prefect, Frank Longbottom, came to collect the four boys from their dorm at half six that evening. He looked exhausted.

"They'll be an assembly in the Great Hall before dinner at seven," he said wearily. "The desks have been found but don't ask me where. I've been searching in the dungeons all morning."

He grimaced and left, leaving the four boys to catch each others' eyes and grin.

"Wonder where they found the desks?" James said innocently and they burst into laughter.

XXX

By seven o'clock the Hall was filled with students whispering excitedly to one another. Rumours flew back and forth across the four houses about where the desks had been found and who might have moved them there.

"I heard they'd been found in the Forbidden Forest," Mary MacDonald whispered conspiratorially to Lily Evans who sat nearby the four Marauders. "They'd been stolen by centaurs!"

"Don't be silly," Lily replied. "What would centaurs need desks for?"

A girl, whom Remus thought might be called Jane, chose this moment to speak up.

"I also heard they'd been found in the Forest," she said. "But that they had been stolen by werewolves."  
>Remus felt a brief, overwhelming urge to laugh at this. He hoped the girl would never find out how true her statement was.<p>

Lily let out an exasperated sigh. "And why would a werewolf need a desk?" she asked.

"Might want to start a school of their own," the other girl said, blushing. "Oh, I don't know! That's just what I heard!"

Sirius took this opportunity to lean over to the three girls.

"Well, _I_ heard that they'd been found on the roof and that they'd been put there by _giants_," he whispered cheerfully. Mary and Jane gasped in horror but Lily simply rolled her eyes.

"And nobody saw them?" she asked sarcastically. "How strange."

Before Sirius could answer, the headmaster entered the room and all fell silent. Behind him strode Professors McGonagall, Flitwick, Slughorn and Sprout, all looking stern. All the other staff members, including the caretaker, Filch, and the huge groundskeeper, Hagrid, were already at the high table. Dumbledore approached it casually, beaming at the students as he passed them. He looked, Remus thought, faintly amused by the whole situation.

"The desks, as I am sure you have no doubt heard by now, have been found," he announced to the student population as though reciting a weather report. "They were discovered, curiously enough, on the school roof."

Mary and Jane shared a look of terror before turning to Sirius who winked at them.

"A note was attached to one of the desks," Dumbledore continued. As he said these words he raised a hand, revealing the scrap of parchment that James had written on only that morning. As the students watched, the parchment began to grow in size until the whole school could read the message scrawled upon it. There was a moment of silence and then, from the far end of the Gryffindor table, the Prewett brothers rose and began to cheer.

As the cheering spread, Remus felt his face grow red. Beside him, James gave him a nudge and the four Marauders rose to join the rest of the student population in celebration.

"Yes, yes," Dumbledore said, after the Hall had fallen quiet again. "We must of course congratulate these – er – _Marauders_ on their fantastic spellwork and original thinking. However, they have managed to break several school rules in the process." His expression became serious now and he gazed out at the students over the top of his half-moon spectacles.

"There is a spell," he said, "which we can use to reveal the identity of the writer of this note."

The four Marauders suddenly stiffened in their seats and all turned to face James who lifted his hand to ruffle his hair nervously.

The whole school waited with baited breath as Professor McGonagall pointed her want at the enlarged parchment and muttered something under her breath.

For a moment nothing happened and Remus allowed himself to hope but then, as the Marauders watched with a growing sense of helplessness, the words on the parchment began to rearrange themselves until they formed a picture. A picture of a young boy with messy, jet-black hair and round glasses, his tongue poking out between his teeth. Then, slowly, the picture vanished, replaced once more by the words James had written so confidently that morning.

"James Potter!" McGonagall barked and the boy rose from his seat.

"Good evening Professor," he said in a would-be-calm voice, and he smiled valiantly as every face in the Hall – teacher, student and ghost – turned to look at him.

"Your accomplices?" McGonagall demanded.

Sirius Black jumped to his feet and bowed.

"At your service madam," he crowed before Peter too, scrambled off the bench.

"Don't forget me too!"

His attempt at bravado faltered a little as McGonagall directed her glare at him.

Remus was frozen in place. He was terrified that, if he didn't own up, his three new friends might refuse to be his friends any longer. Yet, at the same time, he was sure that, if were to admit to the crime, he would be expelled.

Unbidden, an image flashed into his mind.

It was the Marauders Code. And there, written upon it, highlighted by his mind's eye, was the first point.

_If one Marauder is in trouble, then all Marauders are in trouble_.

I must be mad, he thought.

"Detention! All three…" McGonagall was saying, but she stopped as, slowly and nervously, the fourth Marauder climbed to his feet.

"Mr Lupin!" she gasped in shock.

Remus kept his eyes firmly on the empty golden plate in front of him as he felt every eye in the Hall move to him. He felt James slap him on the back and Sirius whooped.

"Behold," he cried. "The four Marauders!"

XXX

A/N: A thank you to all of you who have written such nice reviews and a special thank you to angelica186 who gave me the idea for the table prank.

If anyone has a prank idea that they want included in the story, feel free to pass them to me and I'll see what I can do!


	17. Part 17

**Year 1: Part 17**

**Monday 1****st**** November, 1971**

The boys had, of course, lost points. Thirty points each, in fact. They were then pleasantly surprised when the headmaster, eyes twinkling, rewarded them with five points each for their daring, excellent spellwork, good planning and imagination.

They had then been given a month's worth of detentions together, starting immediately. At that point a rather nervous Remus had stuttered that he would not be available for most of the week. To his immense relief, McGonagall's stern expression had softened a little.

"Of course not," she said before turning to all four of them. "You will serve your detention once Mr Lupin has returned."

"Returned?" Peter asked as they left the room. "Where are you going?"

"Er," Remus' mind felt numb from the lecture they had just been given. He was finding it difficult to think. "Cousin's wedding."

"In November?" Sirius asked in disbelief.

"They live in Florida."

Remus cursed himself silently for giving such a pitiful excuse, he really had no idea what the weather systems were like in Florida this time of year, but his three friends seemed accepted it in silence.

Then they had entered the Common Room to be greeted with cheers from the students. The Prewett twins had come up to them all and shaken each Marauder by the hand with a serious expression on their faces.

"If you ever need any help – "

"Or ideas – "

"An escape route – "

"Or extra hand – "

"We're here to help," they had offered.

The four boys then went to bed, wide grins on their faces and a mutual promise in their hearts that, in the not-so-distant future, another such prank might befall Hogwarts.

XXX

**Tuesday 2****nd**** November, 1971**

The four boys were munching happily on breakfast the next morning when a large owl swooped down between them and dropped a red envelope into the bowl of cereal that Sirius was rapidly devouring.

"Not _another_ one," he complained, up the Howler and turning it over so that could see the address.

"Ah," he said, looking pleased. "It's for you James."

James choked on his piece of toast.

And then another red envelope fell to the table. And another. And another.

The four boys nervously picked up their respective Howlers.

"Together?" James asked and a slow grin spread over Sirius' face.

"Together," they all agreed and, as one, they ripped the letters open.

"PETER PETTIGREW!…"

"…THE SHAME…"

"…CHANCE AT AN EDUCATION…"

"…EVEN YOUR FATHER AGREES…"

The shouts of the Howlers mingled into one giant roar which cause the four boys to lean as far away as they could from the table upon which they had dropped their letters. Even after the shouting had stopped, Remus' ears still rang with the sound.

"Well," James mused. "That was interesting. Any idea what they were saying?"

"Nope," said Sirius cheerfully, brushing the ashes away from his dinner plate. "I'm guessing three mothers and a father, right?"

Remus shook his head. "Godfather," he whispered hoarsely.

"Really? I wish my godfather took that much interest in me. Well, maybe not. He's really quite mad. Can't imagine what a Howler from him would be like."

An extremely rare, introspective expression passed briefly over the boy's face before being replaced by his usual mischievous smile.

XXX

**Wednesday 3****rd**** November, 1971**

That night the full moon reigned and, in the morning, Remus wished that he really had gone to Florida. He ached all over and a few new scratches marred his chest and thighs. However, compared to previous months, the damage he had suffered was minor and he was freed from the hospital wing in time for his last lesson of the day, History of Magic.

"That was a quick wedding," James said, surprised when Remus slid wearily into the seat next to him. Professor Binns, a half-deaf, wizened-looking ghost, continued to drone on about Emeric the Evil as Remus removed his quill and ink from his bag.

"Postponed at the last minute," the young werewolf murmured. "Vicar came down with dragon pox."

James looked unconvinced and Remus quickly began scribbling History notes in order to avoid any more questions.

XXX

The Marauders' detention began that night.

Together, they shuffled mournfully into the Transfiguration classroom where McGonagall sat on her high-backed chair, waiting for them. Once they had entered, she rose and led them though a doorway at the back of the room. A menagerie of animals lay beyond and each creature inhabited a cage.

"You will be cleaning these cages," McGonagall instructed. "_Without_ magic. You will find straw and animal feed in the cupboards at the back of the room. Water is in the taps."  
>She indicated to a small basin hidden behind an iguana who stared lazily back at them. She then gave them each a stern expression.<p>

"I shall be in the other room, marking," she said. "I don't want to be disturbed."  
>And with that, she turned and left.<p>

The four boys continued to stare at the iguana. After a few minutes, James cleared his throat.

"Anybody ever had any pets?" he asked and the other three shook their heads.

The iguana continued to stare at them.

"I say we start with the rats," Peter said, indicating to a cage nearby. Sirius frowned.

"Why?"  
>"They're smaller."<br>"Well, we've got to start somewhere I suppose," Remus sighed. "Might as well be with the rats." 

XXX


	18. Part 18

**A/N: Sorry for the delay. I was away on holiday with no access to any internet (Oh the Horror).**

**Year 1: Part 18**

**Wednesday 3****rd**** November, 1971**

"Rats," Sirius groaned. "I hate rats!"

He crept cautiously towards the first rat cage. Its occupants watched his progress with growing curiosity. Sirius hesitated, eyeing up the rodents until James gave him a tentative prod on the back. Sirius glared back at him but continued forwards.

The four boys had drawn lots as to who would open the first cage. Ordinarily, they had agreed, none of them would have been so afraid to approach this menagerie of animals. But then, these weren't ordinary animals. In fact, these were the animals of the transfiguration class and after a few years of being turned into Neoptolemus Phobos' Compendium of Witches and Wizards in Ancient Greece, even the simplest of creatures will gain a sly cunning and a wicked appetite for mischief and mayhem.

Thus the boys had drawn lots and Sirius had drawn the short straw. Remus felt a wave of pity for the boy before his relief at not drawing the short straw himself brought him back to his senses.

Sirius reached out his hands, stretching his fingers to their full extent in a desperate effort to stay as far away from the cage as possible. His fingertips brushed the bars of the cage as he reached towards the lock.

"Wait!"

Sirius jerked his hand away from the cage as he, James and Peter turned to look at Remus who was attempting to disentangle his wand from his robes.

"McGonagall said to do it without magic," Peter said uncertainly.

"She also said not to disturb her," Remus explained, scrunching up his face as he tried to remember a spell he had come across when reading in the library.

"_Muffliato_," he whispered, pointing at the door.

There was a few seconds of silence.

"Erm, Remus?" James said, scratching his head. "What exactly was that spell meant to do?"  
>"Soundproof the room," Remus said.<p>

"How do we know if it worked?" Peter wondered, nervously shifting from foot to foot.

A loud bang erupted around the room, deafening every single occupant within it.

"What was that for?" Remus asked, glaring at Sirius and rubbing his aching ears.

Sirius put down the metal food bowl he had just hit an empty cage with. There was a dent in the metal of both items.

"Testing whether the spell worked," Sirius said casually. "Look," he added, pointing at the door, which remained firmly shut. "It did work."

"Let's get this detention over with," James interrupted and Sirius sobered when he realised that this meant he would have to complete the daunting task of opening the rat cage.

The rats, who had been startled by the loud noise, suddenly stood stock still and stared at Sirius with intelligent and accusing eyes. The boy glared back and began to sidle closer.

His fingertips brushed the lock. Behind him the other three boys waited, with baited breath, as Sirius pulled back the locking mechanism and opened the door.

The rats remained at the back of the cage, stock still and, after a few moments, all four boys relaxed and began to breathe again.

At this point, all hell broke loose.

The six rats in the cage darted forwards as one. With a cry, Sirius leapt backwards, falling, not-so-gracefully, on his behind. At the entrance to the cage the rats split into pairs, each one heading for another cage of rats. Remus, who had enough sense to realise that six loose rats was bad but even more free rats would be really bad, launched himself across the room at the closest pair of rats. As he flew through the air he realised, a little too late, that Sirius, who was climbing to his feet, was in the middle of his flight path and the two of them fell to the floor in an untidy jumble of robes and limbs.

James, who had been staring in horror as the scene unfolded, suddenly found himself surrounded by twenty rats and several white mice, each armed, somehow, with a rather sharp-looking toothpick. Feeling very much like a hunted mammoth, the black-haired boy backed slowly into a corner.

"Stop!"

Peter's voice, normally shaking with nerves, rang clearly through the room. In his surprise, James's attention moved from the hordes of attacking rodents to his normally quiet friend. On the floor, Remus and Sirius stared out at Peter under one another's' armpits. And, to the surprise of all, the rats and mice stood to attention and saluted the small boy.

Peter, wide-eyed and gulping, realised through a haze of confusion that he held some level of control over these animals and, maybe, he should use that power to put everything back in order again.

"You… You should be ashamed of yourselves," he said, waggling a podgy finger at the small animals in a rather comic, but apparently effective, imitation of Professor Sprout when telling off a particularly bad-behaved mandrake. He then placed his hands on his hips in a very McGonagall-like style, except, being male and a little on the heavy side (thus being devoid of hips), such an action seemed a little odd and not at all complimentary to his figure. However, far from finding this posture ridiculous the rodents hunched their shoulders and began to look a little sheepish (or, at least, as sheepish as it was possible for a rodent to look).

"Do you want to live in dirty cages?" Peter continued. The wild, slightly panicked look in his eyes was fading fast now that he was warming up to the role. "Do you?"

The rodents shook their heads.

"Well, then," Peter said. "Why are you attacking _us_? We're trying to clean them for you after all. But since you obviously don't appreciate it, you're going to have to do it yourself."

The rats stared up at him in horror whilst the other three boys continued to watch with startled awe.

"And after you've done your own cages, you'll do all the other cages in this room, you understand?" Peter added, folding his arms across his chest in a manner which, many years later, Remus would realise had made Peter look very much like his mother.

The rats nodded mournfully and looked down at their feet.

"Well then," Peter added. "Get to it."  
>The rodents began to move back towards their cages, feet dragging on the stone flagstones.<p>

"Quickly," Peter said and the mice squeaked and scurried forwards as fast as their little legs would carry them.

Less than an hour later the four boys left the room, announced to a very surprise Professor McGonagall that they had finished, shown the very surprised Professor McGonagall the cages as proof that, yes, they really _had_ finished, and then waved said professor a cheery goodnight and headed back towards the Gryffindor Common Room.

"That," James said, as they fell through the door to their dormitories, "was the easiest detention I have ever had."

Sirius laughed and toasted Peter with an invisible goblet.

"We'll have to bring you along to more of our detentions Pete," he said, slapping the small boy around the shoulders.

"And you too," James added, nodding towards Remus. "That muffle-whatsit spell was actually pretty neat."  
>Remus let out a gentle 'ha'.<p>

"Thanks for the offer," he said, "but I think I've had enough detentions for one lifetime."


	19. Part 19

**A/N: Again, I apologise for the delay. I've just started at university and life got a little hectic!**

**Year 1: Part 19**

**Saturday 6****th**** November, 1971**

Every evening for the rest of the week the Marauders had attended one detention after another. Thursday had found them writing lines ("I am a wizard and not a removal van") and, on Friday, they were required to remove Drooble's Best Blowing Gum from beneath the desks (no magic, of course). All of this was done under the watchful gaze of Professor McGonagall and neither of these tasks had turned out to be as easy nor as exciting as their first detention together.

The four Marauders were, therefore, exceptionally grateful when they discovered that they had Saturday off. James and Sirius were especially pleased because, as Remus found out when he was pulled roughly from his bed and half-strangled by a red and gold scarf, it was the first Quidditch match of the season.

"Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff," James was explaining, his eyes shining with excitement. "It was supposed to be Gryffindor versus Slytherin, but Slytherin pulled out. Something to do with their Captain being ill."

Sirius snorted. "Probably too afraid to play in this weather, the cowards," he said.

"I don't blame them," Remus muttered, pulling on a shoe and peering out of the window on the opposite side of the dorm. It was almost pitch black outside, despite the fact that it was nearly nine in the morning. Occasionally a flash of lightning in the distance would illuminate the sky, outlining the wind-tossed trees and the thunderclap that followed made an ominous accompaniment to the pounding of the hailstones on the castle windows.

Before Remus could explain to the others that he would much rather catch up on his homework in the nice, _warm_ Gryffindor common room than go to some Quidditch match in _that _weather, he was grabbed by the arm and pulled out of the room by Sirius whilst James continued talking in an animated voice about the rules of Quidditch to an awe-stricken Peter, whose parents, it turned out, were much more interested in muggle sports than in wizarding ones.

When they reached the Entrance Hall, Remus half-hoped the other boys would stop, but instead they kept on moving, apparently oblivious to the horrendous weather that blew through the large oak doors as though they were tissue paper, causing pools of freezing rain water to form upon the floor. Vainly trying to close the doors was an irate Argus Filch whose few strands of greasy hair were being tossed madly around his head by the tempest in a manner that made him look like a crazed storm spirit. He glared at them as they passed and Remus, who had quickly thrown up a weather-proofing spell he had found on one of his trips to the library, prayed that the spell would work against the old caretaker's temper as well. Fortunately the wind chose that moment to topple an old suit of armour, and Filch slouched away to prop it up again.

"…And if the snitch is caught," James was saying, "Then that's it. The game's over."

"Wow," said Peter, who clearly hadn't understood a word of James' excited babbling, nor comprehended a single one of Sirius' unhelpful additions to the black-haired boy's spoken essay on the rules of Quidditch. He had a glassy look in his eyes which Remus noticed but which the others, apparently, did not.

And then, very suddenly, Peter stopped dead and, in a more animated tone, he excalaimed, "Wow!"

Remus followed the small boy's gaze and he too came to a standstill.

Before them, a wooden wall rose high above their heads. Beyond it he could just about make out the excited chatter of what must have been the entirety of the school's student population, as well as the teachers, ghosts and board of governors. In fact, Remus wouldn't have been surprised if he'd found the various creatures of the Forbidden Forest and the inhabitants of Hogsmede crammed inside as well. The noise was so overwhelming.

"It's only a small pitch," Sirius said with a shrug and Remus stared at him in disbelief.

"Come on." James gave a tug on Remus' robe. "Let's try and get some good seats."

The four of them passed through an archway in the wooden wall and found themselves beneath the stands. They climbed up a rickety staircase which seemed to go for miles and, very soon, Peter was beetroot red and panting for breath, but James and Sirius refused to stop until they had reached the very top. Remus fished out a piece of chocolate from his pocket (courtesy of a recent package from his mother) and gave it to the smallest Marauder, who looked ready to pass out. Peter gave him with a weak but grateful smile, and nearly choked on the sweet when two burly Slytherins pushed brusquely past them. The two lead Marauders glowered after them and were rewarded with two identical ugly sneers.

Suddenly, a whistle blew and the crowd fell deathly silent. Then above the roar of the wind a magically amplified voice filled the stands.

"Let's go," James whispered, his voice hoarse with excitement, his brown eyes dancing behind his round glasses. Combined with his jet black hair sticking out at awkward angles, this expression made him look more than a little Puck-like.

The four boys made their way out onto the stands. They were packed, but James and Sirius refused to go down a level in the stands and so the four boys tucked themselves into a small corner. With some difficulty they peered out onto the pitch, over the heads of the taller, older students. They could just make out fourteen figures, seven in red and gold and seven in yellow and black, making their way towards Madam Hooch, brooms in hands. Above the roar of the wind, the commentator (a pretty Ravenclaw fourth year girl) was explaining the rules and introducing the players.

"Mornin'," said a voice to the side of Remus, causing him to jump out of his skin.

"Gideon!" James cried happily, upon seeing the cause of Remus' small heart attack. "Fabian!"

The Prewett brothers grinned and then held up a pair of binoculars.

"Having difficulty seeing the match?" they asked in unison and Peter moved to take the item from them. Just before his fingers closed around them, however, they were jerked back.

"Three Galleons," Fabian said.

"Nah, let's give it to them at a discount," Gideon said. "They are fellow pranksters after all."

Fabian studied his brother for a minute.

"Alright, two Galleons."

"One," Sirius bartered.

"Alright, one Galleon," Gideon agreed.

"But we won't tell you the location of a secret tunnel we discovered last week," Fabian warned.

James and Sirius immediately stopped rummaging in their purse belts to stare at the Prewett's with profound respect and curiosity written all over their faces.

"Secret tunnel?" James asked.

"Leads right into Hogsmede," Gideon said.

"But I bet you'd much rather pay just the one Galleon for these binoculars, watch your Quidditch match in peace and then get on with some homework and go straight back to bed like good little first years, wouldn't you?" Fabian teased.

Remus thought that Fabian's suggestion actually sounded like a good idea. Only third years and above were allowed into Hogsmede and even then they had to have a signed permission form and were only allowed to go on certain weekends throughout the year. He hated to think how much trouble the four of them would be in if _they_ were found wandering the streets of Hogsmede.

But then, of course, there was the fact that he didn't have one Galleon, let alone two, so it didn't look like he'd be getting either the binoculars nor the location of this secret passageway anytime soon. So, instead, he turned his attention back to the pitch. The commentator had just finished introducing the Gryffindor players: ("McGonagall, Young, Shot, Flyer, Cratos, Gudgeon aaaaand Sparkle") and was now announcing the Hufflepuff players.

"Keeper: Timone Charm. Chasers: Jenny, Penny and Tammy Blue…"

Remus started as something was pressed into his hands. James had handed him a pair of binoculars. The boy winked at him, before turning his complete attention to the game. Remus, surprised and hoping that James wouldn't expect him to pay him back later, lifted his binoculars to his eyes.

"Beaters: Billius Nigel and Captain, Ludovic Bagman. Isn't he handsome? And finally, seeker: Simooooone Charm!"

All of the players had their attention on Madam Hooch, who was talking to them. They ignored the commentator and the applause that followed her role calls, although that could have been because they were too far away from the magical speakers to hear her.

Then suddenly they all turned away from the referee and mounted their brooms. Remus felt a flash of recognition as he looked at the Hufflepuff Captain and Beater, Ludovic Bagman. He zoomed in with his binoculars. The boy had an athletic build and was almost certainly a seventh year, although he had a round face and wavy blonde hair which made him look like an overgrown boy. Remus scowled as he tried to remember where he had seen that face before, but the more he tried to remember the faster the answer slipped away from him.

In fact, he was concentrating so hard on trying to remember, that he did not notice when the Gryffindor beater, Davey Gudgeon, accidentally hit a bludger straight into the crowd. Nor did he notice Sirius' shout of warning.

When he woke up in the hospital wing four hours later, however, the mystery of the Hufflepuff Beater was far from his thoughts.


	20. Part 20

**Year 1: Part 20**

**Saturday, 6****th**** November, 1971**

"Welcome back, Mr Lupin, although I'm pretty sure that it was only a few days ago that I you were last in here. It seems I am quite unable to get rid of you."

The harassed face of Madam Pomfrey swam into Remus' vision and he blushed apologetically at her words.

"Not that it's all your fault," the matron continued, helping Remus to sit upright in the bed and handing him a glass filled to the brim with a pink-tinged potion. "Bad luck just seems to follow you, hm?"

He smiled weakly at her and then grimaced. His head really hurt.

The matron nodded at the potion. "Drink," she ordered and he did.

"I'll be keeping you in overnight," she said. "Oh, it's not that bad," she added after seeing his fleeting look of terror, "It's just that head wounds have a habit of turning nasty, so I want to keep you in my sight, just in case."

With that she turned to leave and Remus, thinking he ought to say something, whispered a hoarse, "Thank you."

The matron paused and turned, a brief look of surprise on her face, then she smiled in acknowledgement and left.

XXX

**Sunday, 7****th**** November, 1971**

"Hey, Remus! How big are the war wounds?"  
>Sirius' question greeted him as Remus entered the dorm the next morning and he replied by sending the other three boys a smile.<p>

"I'm alright," he said.

"We thought you were a goner for sure," Sirius continued, his tone light and cheerful. "Blood everywhere, brains seeping out and ouch!"

James nudged Sirius in the ribs effectively halting the other mid-sentence.

"It wasn't that bad," the black-haired boy said putting Remus at ease. "And Gudgeon – the beater who hit the bludger at you – he said that he was sorry and that it was an accident."  
>"Gudgeon lost us the game!" Sirius moaned but James just shrugged.<p>

"We were losing anyway. I mean, even if we hadn't given them that extra ten points for the foul, it would still have been 190 to 30."

The four boys in the room flinched. It _had_ been a bad defeat.

"That Hufflepuff beater was good," Peter said after the painful silence.

"Bagman?" James asked. "Yeah. The Prewetts told me about him. He's in their year. Apparently he's already got offers from several different teams to come and play for them after he's finished school. The Wimbourne Wasps, Chudley Cannons, even some of the European teams, like the Vrasta Vultures."

Sirius choked. "He's got an offer to play for the _Vultures_?"

"That's what I heard."

"But the _Vultures_!"

"Who're the _Vultures_?" Remus asked.

"Oh, they've only won the European Cup _seven times_," Sirius said with awe.

"And they're renowned for the long goal."

"And for chatting up teachers," Peter added.

This caused the other three boys to stop in their tracks and turn to stare at Peter.

"What?"

Peter, upon noticing their attention was entirely on him, blinked nervously, but bravely continued.

"What I meant was… well what I meant… it was that beater, Badman… no Bagman… well it was him that we saw at Halloween, wasn't it Remus? With Childe?"

Peter finished speaking and licked his lips nervously, blinking up at them with his watery eyes. It took another few seconds of silence before the other three boys finally managed to work out what Peter was talking about.

"We don't actually _know_ if they are, er, together," Remus began nervously.

"You and Pete said that they were holding hands," Sirius pointed out.

"Well yes, but…"

"Are teachers allowed to get together with students?" James asked, eyebrows scrunched together in thought.

"Er, I don't think so…"

"Aha!" said Sirius. "So we need to tell another teacher and get Childe kicked out."

"But we don't know for sure…"

"Then we find out," James said, his eyes sparkling. "After all, we _are _the Marauders, aren't we? And if someone's doing something they shouldn't do…"

"And if that someone isn't us…" added Sirius.

"Then we will make sure trouble isn't far behind them."

XXX

**Monday, 8****th**** November**

The boys had planned a rota. On this rota was stated who would stand watch over Professor Childe after curfew, underneath James' invisibility cloak of course. However, they had forgotten that their month-long detention sessions were not yet over and, after returning to the Gryffindor Common Room on the Monday night completely exhausted after helping Professor Sprout weed her herb garden, they decided that maybe James wouldn't have to do it that night.

The next day, after scrubbing all of Professor Slughorn's cauldrons until they could see their own reflections in them, they came to the same verdict for Sirius.

On Wednesday, fatigued after helping Professor Flitwick re-categorise his entire personal library, they barely mentioned it at all.

Then, on Thursday, once they'd rebound Madam Pince's selection of damaged books, they came to the agreement that perhaps it would be best if they waited until after Christmas to spy on the Professor.

And so the parchment containing the rota they'd drawn up was left, spellotaped onto James' cupboard, underneath the Marauders' Code. And when the boys came back the next night after helping Madam Hooch to service all of the school's battered old brooms, they didn't even notice when Sirius accidentally knocked the rota off the cupboard door, nor did they see it as it floated down under James' bed, to become lost in the jumble of socks, sweet wrappers and sweaters. And, eventually, eventually, it was forgotten altogether.

XXX


	21. Part 21

**Year 1: Part 21**

**Thursday, 2****nd**** December, 1971**

"Hey, er, guys?"

Peter continued to stare at his charms essay, eyes unfocussed and glassy as he tapped his quill against his cheek. He made no indication that he had heard anything, so lost in his own world was he. Remus glanced towards the other corner of the dormitory where James and Sirius were locked in an epic game of wizarding chess.

"Get him, come _on_, get him!" Sirius urged his bishop as it chased one of James' errant knights around the board. James himself was in fits of laughter on the floor as his white knight blatantly disregarded the rules and zig-zagged around the board before hiding behind three pawns who looked around in confusion as Sirius' black bishop came panting to a halt before collapsing in exhaustion.

Remus watched, fascinated for a little while longer, silently promising to himself to teach his dorm-mates the rules to chess, before he took a deep breath and tried, once again, to get their attention.

"Guys?"

The game continued and Peter remained dead to the world. Remus sighed and continued regardless.

"I just thought you'd like to know that I'm going now. I probably won't see you all until the beginning of next term. So, you know, Happy Christmas."

He waited a few seconds, before sighing once again and standing up, slinging the bag containing a spare pair of robes over his shoulder. He then made his way towards the door.

"Hey!"

He turned at the sound of James' voice. All three boys were looking at him with puzzled expressions on their faces.

"Where're you going?"

Remus, having prepared his excuse earlier that day, replied easily.

"You remember I was going to my cousin's wedding? In Florida? Well they've found another minister. I'm going tonight."

"Tonight?" James asked. "We probably won't see you until after the holidays then, will we? So, we'd better wish you Happy Christmas."

Remus mentally rolled his eyes.

"Yeah…" he began.

"Do you like your cousin?" Sirius asked suddenly.

"Huh?" Remus was stumped by the unexpected question. "Uh,yeah, I guess so. I mean, I don't really know her that well…"

"I've got to go to a wedding over the holidays as well," Sirius continued gloomily. "My _dear_ cousin Bella. It's taking place on my birthday as well…"

"Wait, you're birthday?" James asked. "What date? We'll send you presents."

"Thirty-first," Sirius said. "New Year's Eve. It's a terrible day to have a birthday. Nobody wants to celebrate it, because they're all celebrating New Year instead."

Remus glanced at his watch. The moon would be rising in less than an hour.

"Look, I've really got to go," he said, glancing apologetically at his three friends. "I'll see you all next year. Happy Christmas!"

And as he left the dorm and headed off towards the Shrieking Shack, where he would be forced to face his worst fear once more, he heard behind him the merry cheer of, "Happy Christmas!", and he smiled.

XXX

**Sunday, 5****th**** December, 1971**

When he returned to the dorm a few days later, it felt eerily quiet. He found it odd that, during term time, he had often wished for the other Marauders to be silent, so that he could enjoy a good book, but after reading the same paragraph for the sixth time in a row, he realised that he had grown used to the company of his new friends and had adapted his reading style to accommodate for their rowdiness. Now, without them, he was surprised to find it difficult to concentrate.

He decided to wonder down to the common room. But it was even worse there. He was, he soon discovered, the only Gryffindor to be staying at Hogwarts during the holidays. He wondered idly, if he were the only student at all left in the castle and, despite the warm fire flickering before him, he shivered.

He began to pace before the fire. True, being alone had its advantages. The comfortable seats close to the fire, usually occupied by seventh years, were now available to him, but…

It was then that Remus realised he had never truly been alone before. His mother was often at work, yes, but Uncle Ezra was always in the house, and even if he didn't talk much, it was a comfort just knowing he was there. And when Remus was in St Mungo's, there was always the Healer on duty, or the other patients.

Five days later, Remus thought he would go mad from lack of company. On the first day of his solitude he had gone to breakfast and sat at the empty Gryffindor table, watching as one or two of the teachers sat at the head table, sipping their coffee and browsing through _The Prophet_. He had seen only one other student, Severus Snape, who had sneered at him from across the hall. He felt suddenly very vulnerable and, after that instance, he had decided to eat in the kitchens. There the elves had pampered him but, he had soon discovered, being with them lacked the easy-going companionship he had become used to when around the other Marauders. Besides, there was only so much food he could eat in one sitting, and since they always gave him snacks to take away with him, he rarely needed to come back to the kitchens to eat until breakfast the next day.

Finally, he decided he'd had enough of seeing the same four walls of his dorm, and enough of seeing the barren common room. Grabbing a coat and his Gryffindor scarf, he left the tower and headed outside.

The chilly winter air hit him as soon as he exited through the doors to the Entrance Hall. He paused for a moment, enjoying the sensation of freedom that came with it.

"Good Morning, Mr Lupin."

Remus spun around and came face-to-face with the twinkling blue eyes of Albus Dumbledore.

"Professor," he gasped, and immediately began to wonder if he had broken a rule. Maybe he wasn't allowed in the grounds, except for herbology or flying lessons, or for his monthly trips to the Whomping Willow and the feared prison beyond.

"I often find that when one is feeling a little down, a good breath of fresh will always cheer me up. And the grounds at Hogwarts are so extensive. They are free to be used by students and staff alike. Except for, of course, the Forbidden Forest, which are out of bounds for students."

He smiled down at Remus, who breathed a sigh of relief. Of course he wasn't in trouble. He was just so unused to seeing people that now, being in another's company, he felt a little jumpy.

"I was on my way to visit the groundskeeper, Rubeus Hagrid. Perhaps you would like to accompany me? I have no doubt that he will not mind. In fact, he would enjoy making a new acquaintance. Although, I have to warn you, the rock cakes are a little difficult to chew. Best to dip them in some tea first."

Remus, who was remembering the giant of a man who had taken them over the lake before the sorting ceremony, felt a little bit nervous about meeting him again. But he felt that he could not refuse the headmaster's offer. After all, the man was the sole reason he was allowed to be at Hogwarts in the first place.

And so the two of them set of at a gentle pace towards the groundskeeper's hut on the edge of the forest. During their journey Dumbledore asked Remus how he was finding his studies and the boy was quite happy to talk animatedly about the first time he had transfigured a button into a paperclip and how Sirius had decided to imitate a honking daffodil in Herbology.

"Ah yes, Mr Sirius Black. He, Mr Potter and Mr Pettigrew are good friends of yours?"

"Yes. I mean, we all sleep in the same dorm and have the same lessons so we do pretty much everything together. And we help each other out a lot. Peter's better at potions than the rest of us, James is a whizz at transfiguration and Sirius is pretty good at charms when he puts his mind to it."

Dumbledore smiled. "It is good to know that you have a close set of friends around you. I believe that you will need them often over the years as they will need you. Ah, we have arrived."

They stood before the wooden door to the groundskeeper's hut. Dumbledore smiled at Remus as the boy bit his lip nervously, before knocking lightly on the door.

Remus jumped as a series of loud, booming barks sounded from within the hut, followed by an equally loud and booming voice. "Back, Claw, _back_!"

The huge hairy face of the giant-man Hagrid appeared from behind a crack in the door.

"Professor Dumbledore, sir, make yerself at home."

He opened the door, allowing them to enter, pulling back a rather large boarhound as he retreated back into the hut.

"This is Remus Lupin, Hagrid," Dumbledore said, as Remus sat down gingerly on the edge of an armchair so massive it looked as though it might eat him whole.

Hagrid looked up, clearly interested, and in doing so he let go of the dog which bounded towards Remus, knocking him flat on his chest before proceeding to lick his nose. Remus, started, alarmed, but then began to giggle as the dog began to lick a ticklish spot under his ear. He scratched the dog affectionately on the nose, and the dog barked happily, before jumping up to sit next to Remus on the chair, his wagging tail hitting the boy enthusiastically on the shoulder.

"He likes yer," Hagrid said, pouring tea. "O'course, Claw likes mostly everyone, he's a real softie, but he seems ter really like you. Makes sense, I s'pose. You being a werewolf an' all."

Remus froze. Claw, barked, objecting to the lack of stroking, and butted his nose against Remus' cheek.

"Hagrid is, ah, fascinated by all manner of magical creatures," Dumbledore explained. "I don't believe he's ever met a werewolf before."

"Not that I know of," Hagrid said, offering Remus a rock cake. The boy accepted but, remembering Dumbledore's earlier warning, did not take a bite. "O'course, most werewolves don' tend to advertise wha' they are, do they? An' I don' blame 'em. There's a lo' of prejudice around. An' ministry regulations aren't helping are they?"

Remus shook his head, partly in agreement, and partly because he couldn't believe his ears. Was this man, this scary giant-man, a werewolf sympathiser?

"I know wha' it's like," Hagrid said, leaning in conspiratorially, "ter be considered a half-breed, not quite human, a freak. You see – mind yer, you gotta promise not ter tell anyone, not even yer friends – me mum, well," his voice dropped to a whisper, "I'm half gian'."

Remus' eyes widened as he subconsciously gathered up all the information he knew about giants. They were brutal, stupid, and, well, gigantic. They ate children for breakfast, they…

In another half of his brain, a different voice began to speak up. 'This man, Hagrid,' it said, 'he seems nice enough. I mean, he's big, but not _that_ big. And he doesn't seem _that _stupid and, hell, he just offered me a rock cake and made me tea, and his dog, alright, it looks terrifying, but it's really just a softie. So this Hagrid isn't exactly brutal or violent. He's just nice and friendly.'

And then, yet another voice said, tauntingly, 'Eats children for breakfast? That's what they say about werewolves. Ever eaten a child for breakfast, Remus?'

Suddenly he became aware of his surroundings again. To his left, sat comfortably in his armchair, Dumbledore sat, looking unconcerned and sipping his tea. To his right, Claw sat curled up against his side, tail still wagging contentedly, although his eyes were now closed. And before him sat Hagrid, looking at him nervously, as though expecting him to run away screaming.

Remus took a deep breath and smiled.

"Yeah," he said, a little shakily. "There's a lot of prejudice against… against people like us. I mean," Remus continued, gathering up his courage, "I've heard a lot of wild stories about werewolves, like how they eat children for breakfast, but I certainly haven't, and I highly doubt any werewolves have either."

Hagrid let out a booming laugh. "I've heard the same thing about giants," he said. "But tell me, is it true that werewolves have a heightened sense of smell, even when untransformed?"

An hour later, when Dumbledore left, the two were still talking animatedly about werewolves, giants and various other magical creatures and, when Remus left the hut at about five that evening – his pockets heavy with rock cakes and his ears ringing with Hagrid's promise that he could come and visit, any time – Remus' felt the happiest he had been since the Marauders left.

XXX

A/N I'm sorry for the long wait. I promise to try and put up some more regular updates in the future!

And, once again, thank you for all the lovely reviews!


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